Junior cop scolded for trying to restrict political messaging at Haifa Pride Parade

After a junior officer from the Haifa police station issued new guidelines for the city’s upcoming pride parade restricting political messaging, police announced on Tuesday that the document was distributed “contrary to the policy of the district commander.”

The parade was initially set to take place in June, but was postponed to Wednesday, August 27, due to the war with Iran.

A notice sent Monday to parade organizers included new conditions that did not appear in the original license for the event granted by police, including a ban on political information booths and flying flags that could “disturb the public peace,” including anti-war signs and hostage posters.

Law enforcement’s move was met with indignation from organizers of the parade, who petitioned against the regulations to the High Court of Justice on Tuesday.

Court Justice Daphne Barak-Erez harshly criticized the police’s conduct, prompting Israel Police Commissioner Danny Levy to launch a probe into the incident.

“I am trying to find a word that is respectful enough — it is quite a shame what is happening here,” Barak-Erez said during the hearing. “Why are the police issuing illegal directives, which they shouldn’t have given in the first place?”

National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir also rejected the guidelines, calling them “out of place” and claiming they were distributed by a junior officer without the permission of Haifa station commander Eyal Shahar.

“The decision of a [junior] officer to restrict the freedom of political expression at the pride parade is out of place,” he wrote on X, but clarified that it “does not mean people should shame him — these are the same police that saved us on October 7.” He also defended Shahar, who was taking flak for the notice, as a “professional and excellent” officer.

Police also stressed that the document was distributed without senior officers’ knowledge and in violation of the original license, saying the Coastal District “works in full cooperation and arm-in-arm with the LGBT community and its representatives, out of respect and appreciation.”

The Aguda, Israel’s foremost LGBT rights group, claimed that proposals to limit political expression also came from senior officials in the district during discussions leading up to the event, but police denied the claims.

At Jerusalem’s pride parade earlier this summer, members of the progressive advocacy group Mehazkim told The Times of Israel that police ordered them to remove anti-war messaging from their stand while handing out merchandise ahead of the march.

“We had stickers and shirts about ending the war, bringing the hostages back and ending the occupation,” said a volunteer with the group at the time. “Police officers requested that we remove all these things or they’d force us out of the event and fine us. They also took pictures of our IDs.”