Police Consider Blocking Caravans From Reaching Military Prison Protest

Police are weighing whether to prevent the protest car convoys planned for Wednesday from reaching the military prison complex at Prison 10 in Kfar Yona, and instead redirect them to a distant parking lot outside the city. According to people familiar with the plan, officers may also hand out fines to drivers who travel too slowly. The move comes a day before a large anti-arrest demonstration set to begin at 4:00 p.m. from dozens of locations across Israel.

The protest is aimed at the wave of arrests of yeshiva students and married students, and organizers expect about 2,500 vehicles to take part. They say the convoy will be one of the largest car protests seen in the ultra-Orthodox sector in recent years. The planned route is from 19 departure points nationwide to the military prison, under the slogan, “Enough! There is no way without the way of the Torah!”

Kfar Yona Mayor Albert Tayeb said he intends to lead a “human wall” to stop demonstrators from entering the city. “This has nothing to do with the Haredim. The coalition also includes Haredim, this also happened before in the Shde Teiman affair. In the name of democracy you cannot shut down a city. We will not allow it to be closed,” he said. He added that if protests do take place, the city will be blocked at the Givat Alonim and Yafe Nof neighborhoods.

The organizing committee listed the 19 launch points as Eilat, Ashdod, Tiberias, Beitar Illit, Beit Shemesh, Bnei Brak, Geva Binyamin, Haifa, Hatzor HaGlilit, Jerusalem, Modiin Illit, Migdal HaEmek, Netanya, Emmanuel, Afula, Arad, Safed, Kiryat Gat and Rehovot. Earlier reports said the Edah HaChareidis would join the convoy on the instruction of the Badatz, marking what was described as an unprecedented cooperation between Agudat Yisrael, the Jerusalem Faction and the Edah HaChareidis.