A mass protest, billed as the “Million-Man Rally,” is planned for this Thursday afternoon at the entrance to Yerushalayim. The demonstration will coincide with a meeting of the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee discussing the proposed draft law and will protest what organizers describe as the “persecution of Torah learners.”

The rally comes on the heels of the arrests of yeshiva bochurim who have not joined the army. Last week, a bochur who spent the past year in Kevutza at 770 was arrested at Ben Gurion Airport upon his return to Eretz Yisroel. He was the first of the 5785 Kevutza to be arrested upon arrival, and in the coming weeks, dozens more are expected to return and face similar arrests following the cancellation of the long-standing arrangement with Chabad.

Since 5776 (2016), an arrangement has allowed Chabad yeshivah students to defer military service until their mid-20s after completing their years of learning. Under this framework, Chabad became the largest chareidi group to enlist, with over a thousand soldiers participating. However, the law enabling this arrangement was repealed two years ago, and efforts to reestablish it have failed.

As reported by Anash.org, the IDF rejected four proposals presented by the Beis Din Rabbonei Chabad to renew the “Chabad Arrangement,” leaving many students at risk of arrest upon departure or return from abroad.

Earlier this Tishrei, another bochur from a Chabad yeshivah in Eretz Yisroel was arrested at Ben Gurion Airport while traveling to New York to spend Tishrei at 770. He was quickly tried and sentenced to 20 days in military prison.

It remains unclear what will happen when the remaining Kevutza students return to Eretz Yisroel, and what steps, if any, are being taken to resolve the growing crisis.

At this time, Beis Din Rabbonei Chabad of Eretz Yisroel is considering whether Anash and Lubavitcher bochurim should participate in the rally.