Police and light-rail security personnel are clearing protesters from the Bar Ilan Street construction compound, according to police spokesperson Inbar Twizer. New footage shows the operation underway late Thursday night.
Late Thursday night, Jerusalem police and light-rail security personnel began clearing protesters from the Bar Ilan Street light-rail construction site, according to police spokesperson Inbar Twizer, who released additional footage of the operation. This development follows hours of disruption that began after midnight Thursday, when hundreds of Haredi protesters were first reported actively disrupting construction work (The Zioneer, Thu 00:00 Jerusalem). By that same early-morning hour, footage had emerged showing a demonstrator stepping into freshly poured concrete at the site, as shared by journalist Eli Hershman and reported in several thread versions (The Zioneer, Thu 00:00 Jerusalem). The clearing operation now underway marks the latest escalation in the overnight protest sequence.
The thread has documented a pattern of Haredi activism against the light-rail project over recent weeks. Earlier coverage, from a bulletin published Sun Jun 28, 23:21 Jerusalem, reported police continuing to disperse disorder and blocking attempts to damage the rail infrastructure at the same Bar Ilan site, with fires set adjacent to the works. A bulletin from Tue Jun 23, 15:46 Jerusalem described police and Border Police officers restoring public order and reopening roads after a previous disorder at the compound. Additional background bulletins, dated as far back as Sun Jun 7, 21:48 Jerusalem, show that protests have included blocking tracks, stepping into wet concrete, setting fires, and clashes with police using batons.
As The Zioneer reported on Sun Jun 28, 23:21 Jerusalem, police have repeatedly cited attempts to cause damage to the rail infrastructure as a focus of their operations at the site. The current protest campaign appears to be part of a broader wave of ultra-Orthodox demonstrations against the light-rail project that has played out over the past month, often concentrated at the Bar Ilan compound.
No reports of injuries or arrests were immediately available from the clearing operation. The extent of any disruption to construction work overnight is not yet clear, and it remains unverified how many protesters were removed or whether the site has been fully secured.
5 developments
- DevelopingUltra-Orthodox protesters set fire near Jerusalem light rail construction site
- StrongPolice clear Jerusalem light-rail area, reopen roads after disorder
- DevelopingPolice continue to disperse disorder, block damage attempts near Jerusalem light rail
- StrongHaredi protesters block Jerusalem light rail, clash with civilians as Sephardic rally begins
Source and signal
- Internal intake