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Neturei Karta burn flag (archives)
Photo: Noam Moskovich

Haredi charged with burning Israeli flag on Memorial Day

Yehiel Hazan was arrested by undercover officer during Neturei Karta rally held as siren honoring Israel's fallen soldiers sounded

In an expedited procedure, a  20-year-old ultra-Orthodox man was indicted on Monday for allegedly setting fire to an Israeli flag at Jerusalem's Shabbat Square on the eve of Memorial Day.

 

Yehiel Hazan was arrested by an undercover police office Sunday evening during a rally held by the anti-Zionist sect Neturei Karta as the Memorial Day siren honoring Israel's fallen soldiers sounded throughout the country.

 

 

According to the indictment, "When the siren sounded the defendant, along with other (protestors), began to clap his hands and growl aloud. He held an Israeli flag in one hand and set it on fire with the other. Then the defendant, along with some other people, stomped on it."

 

The offenses attributed to Hazan include disorderly conduct and desecration of the State flag.

 

During the rally, some 150 people waved signs bearing anti-Israel slogans and clashed with police. The Neturei Karta members later torched trash bins on nearby Shivtei Yisrael Street.

 

Also on Memorial Day eve, a group of about 20 haredi Jews celebrated a birthday at Tel Aviv's Yarkon Park.

 

The Neturei Karta sect's campaign against Israel has been going for years, but has recently intensified.

 

Last January four of the sect's members, US and Canadian citizens, visited the Gaza Strip and spent Shabbat with members of Hamas. They noted that the visit was aimed at showing support for the Palestinian people. 

 


פרסום ראשון: 04.19.10, 16:54
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