Islam Times - Mayhem in Jerusalem Al-Quds during Protests over Ongoing Lockdown

Islam Times - Rioters threw rocks, blocked roads and scuffled with police in an ultra-Orthodox neighborhood in Jerusalem al-Quds, as anger over Israel’s COVID-19 measures continues to spill into the streets.

Protesters in Mea Shearim neighborhood hurled rocks at moving vehicles and created street barricades using garbage dumpsters during Tuesday’s unrest, according to local media. Police are said to have deployed a water cannon to disperse the crowd, and made several arrests.

Footage shows several fires burning in the streets as demonstrators skirmish with police. Cops in riot gear are seen dragging away several protesters who were blocking the road.

In Modi'in Illit, an Israeli settlement in the West Bank, ultra-Orthodox Jews tried to block police vehicles, resulting in confrontations with police at the scene.

The protests come just days after Orthodox believers in Mea Shearim clashed with police after the community opened its yeshiva religious schools in violation of nationwide lockdown measures.

Israel is currently under its third lockdown. The restrictions are set to expire on Sunday, but the government has yet to announce a plan to gradually lift them. Health officials have warned that easing measures may be a slow process due to new variants of the virus spreading widely in occupied Palestinian territories.

Israel’s Orthodox community has been actively resisting the COVID-19 restrictions for months. Their protests against the measures, which have placed limitations on travel and shuttered schools and ‘non-essential’ businesses, have become a regular occurrence.