During his weekly class, Rabbi Yigal Cohen delivered a sharp rebuke of what he described as severe police violence during the faction protest on Route 4 last week. He said the officers' conduct was “brutality and cruelty” and unacceptable under any circumstances.
Cohen said he felt compelled to speak out so it would not appear that his camp was silent. “I have to talk about this, about the beatings there with the police,” he said, adding that no situation justifies such behavior by law enforcement, regardless of the protesters' actions.
Reacting to disturbing footage, he said, “What I saw there, they lost their humanity,” and argued that even if people needed to be removed, “this is not the way.” He stressed that the demonstrators were “people of Torah” seeking only to study, not to demand anything else. He was especially shocked by the alleged use of batons against minors, asking, “A 16-year-old child and you hit him with a baton? You break all his bones? For what?”
Cohen directly addressed the officers, saying that if they wanted to move someone, they should lift him “with dignity,” even “like a mezuzah,” and place him aside without beating him. He said the officers had “lost their humanity” and compared their conduct to “antisemites among the nations.” He urged them to repent, said the images made him cry, and noted he had not responded earlier because he was on a plane. He concluded by wishing a full and speedy recovery to all those injured.
