In a violent development unprecedented since the outbreak of the coronavirus, ultra-Orthodox rioters attacked police officers in Bnei Brak late Thursday, drawing quick condemnation from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
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The riots began after dozens of Haredi yeshiva students who had violated public health guidelines and gathered in the city illegally hurled rocks at a civilian vehicle while police officers were inside it.
The crowd spotted the officers inside the vehicle, gathered around it, threw rocks, smashed its windshields and punctured its tires.
The rioters tried to open the car doors, while the officers in the vehicle called for backup. Three police officers were lightly injured.
"I strongly condemn the violence toward Israel Police forces operating in Bnei Brak," Netanyahu said shortly after the incident.
"We will act with a heavy hand against the lawbreakers," he said. "First and foremost against whoever lifts his hands against our police officers."
The prime minister called on "all Israeli citizens, without exception" to follow the Health Ministry's safety guidelines.
Police later detained six individuals suspected of involvement in the attack after raiding the Vizhnitz Hassidic yeshiva, which earlier in the day had been shut down by police officers for violating Health Ministry guidelines against large public gatherings.
Public Security Minister Amir Ohana said that "the savage violence we saw [Thursday] night in Bnei Brak is a heinous crime which will not pass quietly. The response will come, and fast."
Interior Minister and Shas Chairman Aryeh Deri said: "The terrible violence [Thursday night] in Bnei Brak by several rioters against police officers who were there on duty to enforce the lockdown is appalling and outrageous. The rioters must be arrested and prosecuted to the full extent of the law. We must follow safety guidelines and save lives."
Shas MK Moshe Arbel also denounced the incident.
"I express shock and disgust at a wild mob dressed as Haredim who physically harmed Israeli police officers. Barbarism of this kind has no place in our camp and in society. I expect law enforcement to bring these perpetrators to justice. They are not Haredim."
Chairman of the Knesset's Constitution, Law and Justice Committee, MK Yakov Asher (United Torah Judaism) said, "All forms of violence must be denounced and it needs to be made unequivocally clear that this is not our way. With that, there's no hiding the sense that the police is working under pressure from the media, and instead of using sound judgment is being dragged into street fights that don't achieve [the goal] of minimizing public gatherings, but rather the complete opposite, and that's a shame."
Former Justice Minister MK Ayelet Shaked (Yamina) tweeted: "The location is no longer relevant. Bnei Brak, the Negev, or the Galilee, Israel is in the midst of a severe crisis of governance and non-functioning leadership. The neglect and lack of control stem from a weak and detached government. The time has come for new leadership."
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