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BNEI BRAK, Israel (AP) \u2014 Hundreds of ultra-Orthodox Jewish men blocked a major highway in central Israel for two hours on Thursday to protest a recent Supreme Court decision ordering young religious men to enlist for military service<\/a>.<\/p>\n Military service is compulsory for most Jewish men and women in Israel. But politically powerful ultra-Orthodox parties have won draft exemptions for their followers that allow them instead to study in religious seminaries.<\/p>\n This long-standing arrangement has bred widespread resentment among the broader public \u2014 a sentiment that has grown stronger<\/a> during the eight-month war against Hamas<\/a> in Gaza. Over 600 soldiers have been killed, and tens of thousands of reservists have been activated, straining careers, businesses and family lives.<\/p>\n Protesters sat on the highway and lay on the ground as police lifted them up and dragged them away. Officers mounted on horseback charged into the crowd. Many demonstrators held signs and chanted \u201cTo prison! Not to the army!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe all came here for one goal, we reflect the position of all the Orthodox public,” said a young man, identifying himself only by his first name Ozer. \u201cAll the Orthodox public prefers to go to prison and not to the army.\u201d<\/p>\n The ultra-Orthodox see their full-time religious study as their part in protecting the state. Many fear that greater contact with secular society through the military will distance adherents from strict observance of the faith.<\/p>\n The Supreme Court this week ordered the government to begin drafting ultra-Orthodox men, saying the system of exemptions is unequal.<\/p>\n