Jerusalem braces for clashes, friction as tens of thousands gather for annual Flag March

The capital was bracing Thursday for clashes and widespread friction during Jerusalem Day, which is set to see tens of thousands of national-religious revelers parade through the Old City as part of the holiday’s annual Flag March.

Thousands of police and Border Police officers were deployed throughout Jerusalem Thursday morning, particularly in the Old City. Palestinian shopkeepers in the Muslim Quarter largely shuttered their businesses at the behest of law enforcement.

Jerusalem Day, which marks the reunification of the city under Israeli rule in the 1967 Six-Day War, is typically associated with the Flag March, an annual procession through the Old City to the Western Wall, where mass prayer is held.

Some extremist Jewish youth in the lead-up to and during the parade have been known to harass and beat Palestinians, as well as vandalize their property during the procession, especially as it enters the Old City through the Muslim Quarter’s Damascus Gate.

A Palestinian shopkeeper, who declined to give his name to The Times of Israel, said he planned to close his business at 3 p.m., several hours before the Flag March is set to enter the Old City.

He noted that in comparison to previous years, a larger number of business owners decided not to open at all. Others were seen taping padlocks to the entrances of their shops.

The march typically takes place in the afternoon of Jerusalem Day, which falls this year on Thursday evening and ends Friday night, but has been moved up to Thursday afternoon, before the holiday officially begins, to avoid running into the start of the Shabbat day of rest.

Most male participants were set to begin the march on Thursday afternoon near Jerusalem’s Great Synagogue, where several right-wing politicians were expected to give speeches.

An alternate route for women was set to begin on Bezalel Street and skirt the Muslim Quarter, snaking around the perimeter of the Old City’s southern wall.

To make way for the marchers, police were expected to close several roads to traffic, including the main thoroughfare between West and East Jerusalem.

“We call on participants to adhere to police instructions and refrain from any acts of violence, physical or verbal, to preserve the celebratory nature of the day,” police said in a statement.

Already at 10 a.m., Border Police stationed outside Damascus Gate were checking the ID cards of some of those trying to enter the Old City.

Last year’s march saw several attacks on Palestinians and journalists by marchers, who chanted anti-Arab refrains and plastered stickers on shuttered shops, many with calls to expel Palestinians from the Gaza Strip or praises for National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir and his far-right Otzma Yehudit party.

Meanwhile, an alternative march in West Jerusalem organized by the Ammunition Hill Memorial Site, widely seen as intended for more liberal-leaning celebrants, was canceled at the last minute.

The Heritage Ministry — which was supposed to fund the event — told Haaretz that the Finance Ministry did not transfer the budget needed to hold the march.

It had been set to begin outside the Knesset, circle government buildings, Sacher Park, and the Valley of the Cross, and then come to a close outside the National Library.

Some 5,000 people had registered for the event, according to the outlet, and it was to feature speakers such as Rabbi Benny Lau and journalist Jacky Levy.

Eyal Gur, a liberal activist involved in Saving Our Shared Home, a Jerusalem-based protest group, said the event had been canceled entirely.

He further told The Times of Israel that some members of his group would attend the start of the main march, where they planned to pass out fliers to participants urging them not to harass or behave violently toward Palestinian locals.

Liberal lawmaker Gilad Kariv (The Democrats party) said he submitted a request to the police to bar the march from entering the Muslim Quarter, which was not accepted.

“For years, we have been calling on the police to change the route of the Flag March so that it would not pass through the Muslim Quarter. Every year, the police close their eyes,” he wrote. “The violent incidents and racist incitement that take place under the auspices of the Flag March are an embarrassment to Judaism, Zionism and the State of Israel.”