Eli Bitan

Eli Bitan is a journalist in the ultra-Orthodox press in Israel, and a blogger on Local Call.

Recent Articles

Israeli police officers chase an ultra-Orthodox man during a police operation in the Haredi neighborhood of Mea Shearim, in Jerusalem, October 5, 2026. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)

Days away from Israeli elections, a ‘sour mood’ pervades the Haredi street

As their decades-long alliance with the right frays, ultra-Orthodox parties have left their public facing a draft crisis, rising poverty, and political disillusionment.

By Eli Bitan October 15, 2026

Ultra-Orthodox men being sprayed with a police water cannon during a protest against the imprisonment of yeshiva students who failed to comply with army draft orders, in Jerusalem, June 1, 2026. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

The Haredi draft revolt threatening to bring Israel to a standstill

As the government seeks to enforce military service for all, ultra-Orthodox refusal is revealing cracks in the country’s militaristic consensus.

By Eli Bitan June 23, 2026

Leader of the Joint List Ayman Odeh (R) and party member Ahmad Tibi arrive for a meeting with party members at the Knesset on September 22, 2019. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

For the Israeli right, Jewish-Arab partnership is the stuff of nightmares

As far as Israel’s right is concerned, the very real possibility that the country will be led by a Jewish-Arab partnership is the greatest threat of all.

By Eli Bitan December 6, 2019