Israel’s Population and Immigration Authority recently changed the country’s departure procedures, a move that is expected to prevent bnei yeshivos with exit-ban orders from bypassing airport controls and leaving the country, Army Radio reported.

The move closed a loophole that allowed Chareidi “draft evaders” to leave Israel and comes as thousands of Breslover chassidim prepare to travel to Uman ahead of Rosh Hashanah.

Until now, a considerable number of Chareidi draft evaders managed to leave Israel despite being subject to exit-ban orders. How? Exit-ban checks were carried out only at the airport’s passport control checkpoint. The checkpoint consisted of automated passport control gates, and many Chareidi draft evaders managed to bypass it by closely following a companion who was not subject to an exit-ban order. When the gate opened for the companion, they were able to slip through as well.

But now, under a new procedure recently introduced by the Population and Immigration Authority, anyone subject to an exit-ban order can no longer check in for a flight at the airport.  At that stage, airlines are now notified that the passenger is prohibited from leaving the country, effectively preventing the individual from reaching the airplane and leaving Israel.

The Population and Immigration Authority responded: “In recent months, the departure process from Israel has indeed been streamlined. It was decided that anyone subject to an exit-ban order would be informed at the beginning of the departure process rather than at its conclusion, allowing the matter to be resolved before the process begins.”

(YWN Israel Desk—Jerusalem)