Haredim vandalize buses featuring women on campaign ads
Tires of Egged buses in Jerusalem featuring Women of the Wall campaign promoting Bat Mitzvahs at the Western Wall were slashed and the buses spray-painted.
Some of the buses had to be towed away, while the rest were extracted from the area by the police.
No one was hurt in the incident, and so far no arrests have been made.
The Egged bus company said 10 of its buses were vandalized. The company said that following the incident, it would change its bus lines, steering them away from the area out of concern the buses would be targeted again. The company also intends to file a complaint with the police.
The adverts are a part of a campaign by Women of the Wall. This isn't the first time signs from this campaign have been vandalized. The Women of the Wall said the campaign's photos of women were torn off buses recently.
Women of the Wall director Lesley Sachs said that "it's sad to see how once again the Haredim take the law into their own hands and act violently against women in the name of Judaism. This is twisted fanaticism that desecrates anything that isn't in line with their world view.
"We regret the lack of a sane and responsible Haredi leadership that would condemn these acts of thuggery.
"We call on the public security minister and on the Jerusalem police to take any measure to find these lawbreakers and put them on trial."
The campaign ads feature four teenager girls wearing a Tallit and holding a Torah scroll, and promotes Bat Mitzvah ceremonies for girls at the Western Wall. The ads read in Hebrew: "Mom, I too want a bat mitzvah at the Kotel" and "V'zot Hatorah" (Translates to "Here is the Torah," also a pun in Hebrew as the phrase is in feminine form: "And this is her turn").
Another campaign also calling for equality, titled "Women of Jerusalem - nice to meet you," has put up billboards in the capital featuring six Israeli women. The campaign aims to fight exclusion of women in the public sphere. The campaign was a response to Egged's refusal to feature photos of women on its buses in Jerusalem due to the concern the buses will be vandalized.
A petition against Egged and its advertising company "Canaan" led to an agreement between the company and the state six months ago, that the state would pay for any damages caused by vandals to buses featuring photos of women in Jerusalem and Beit Shemesh.
Last week, shortly after the campaign was relaunched, ads put up in Jerusalem were vandalized, with the photos of the women in the ads torn off.
"The fact several ads from the campaign were vandalized doesn't surprise us, doesn't worry us and doesn't deter us," said Merrick Stern, the head of Jerusalem Movement.
