Israeli security chief Avi Dichter, attempting to adopt the pretense of trying to uphold the law, has for weeks been issuing an open invitation to Israel's haredi community to indulge in massive rioting and violence. As a result, police have been injured, property has been damaged, the peace of Jerusalem has been shattered and the rule of law has been trampled underfoot. Congratulations, Mr. Dichter. I do hope you're proud of yourself.
When rogue elements of society find themselves offended by something, be it a cartoon, a perceived injustice or a parade, and when those elements threaten violent riots in protest, the appropriate response of law enforcement is to discourage such behavior by making it eminently clear that a) violence won't achieve its goal and b) it will be punished severely. Dichter's response to the threat of violence over a now thrice-postponed gay pride parade in Jerusalem was to provide an open incentive for the riots that are now occurring.
Haredim continued rioting on Saturday night in Jerusalem's Mea She'arim neighborhood in protest of the parade, which is scheduled for Friday.
The rioters pelted police with stones and set garbage bins on fire in the streets of the neighborhood, blocking all traffic in the area. The post-Shabbat protests continued into the night at various street corners in the neighborhood.
Four vehicles were damaged by spikes the protesters placed on the street, the police said.
By announcing, repeatedly, that the way to stop the parade would be to convince the police that they had no hope of containing the security situation ("If police believe that they cannot guarantee public safety, the march will not go ahead"), Dichter may as well have offered to supply the chains and eggs and metal debris that the protesters have been throwing at police in mere anticipation of the event. If this was his intention, it has been all too predictably successful.
The Jerusalem police said on Sunday evening that they would not be able to maintain security at the Gay Pride Parade planned for this Friday in Jerusalem. They have not yet announced a ban on the march, but said they would be unable to secure the event and ensure the safety of its participants.
Police Chief Insp.-Gen. Moshe Karadi offered other alternatives to the parade, such as holding an event in a Jerusalem park where police could secure the area, or holding it in another city, like Tel Aviv.
Whether or not the proposed alternatives are viable or acceptable to either the gay community or the haredim, the clear message emerging from this sorry mess is that violent rampages work, that they succeed where peaceful means do not, and that intimidation as a tactic will prevail over the rule of law. In other words, bad behavior will be rewarded.
Dozens of ultra-Orthodox men hurled stones Sunday evening at Egged buses in the town of Beit Shemesh, near Jerusalem, protesting the fact that the buses were "not kosher" (did not separate between men and women).
One driver was lightly injured, while another driver was forced to fire shots in the air in order to get away from the rioters.
A sorry state of affairs, indeed. See also, Omri.
