President Donald Trump is scheduled to meet Thursday at the White House with several prominent Hasidic and ultra-Orthodox Jewish leaders, including figures identified as anti-Zionist or non-Zionist, in talks expected to address concerns over the enlistment of yeshiva students in the Israel Defense Forces.
The planned meeting, arranged ahead of Rosh Hashanah, has prompted debate in Jewish communities in the United States and Israel because some expected participants reject Zionism and oppose the State of Israel’s claim to represent Judaism.
Invitees include Rabbi Aaron Teitelbaum and Rabbi Zalman Leib Teitelbaum, leaders of rival Satmar Hasidic communities; the Skverer rebbe; the Bobov rebbe; the Vizhnitzer rebbe of Monsey; and Rabbi Malkiel Kotler, a leading figure at Beth Medrash Govoha, a major yeshiva in Lakewood, New Jersey.
Belaaz, an ultra-Orthodox news outlet, first reported that White House Jewish liaison Martin Marks had worked for months to organize the gathering. The plans called for short individual meetings with President Trump and a possible group discussion, though some of the invited leaders were reported to be considering sending representatives instead.
The question of Israeli military service is expected to feature prominently. Israel’s long-standing exemptions for many full-time yeshiva students have become a major domestic political and legal issue, with court rulings and public pressure pushing the government to increase haredi enlistment.
Rabbi Aaron Teitelbaum said he had initially considered declining the invitation, but cited “tens of thousands of Jews in Eretz Yisroel [the Land of Israel] are in distress because of the decree to draft yeshiva students.”
“We hope that we will be able to appeal to the president to help with this situation,” Teitelbaum said.
Satmar and several other haredi groups distinguish their religious identity from Zionism and have often opposed Israeli state institutions. Their views do not represent all Orthodox Jews, and many haredi communities in Israel and the Diaspora support Israel while seeking continued protections for Torah study.
The meeting is unusual because President Trump has generally met Jewish leaders who focus on US-Israel relations and combating antisemitism. Critics fear the gathering could be used to seek US pressure on Israel over the enlistment dispute. Supporters describe it as a chance for religious leaders to present their community’s concerns directly to the American president.
