From the Liveblog of
Thursday, December 18, 2025
Asked about Jerusalem riot, spokesman for Haredi party leader shares video of cop hitting Haredi man
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on GoogleSam Sokol is a former political correspondent at The Times of Israel. He was previously a reporter for the Jerusalem Post, Jewish Telegraphic Agency and Haaretz. He is the author of "Putin’s Hybrid War and the Jews"
A spokesman for United Torah Judaism chairman Yitzhak Goldknopf declines to comment when asked about this afternoon’s riot in Jerusalem in which ultra-Orthodox demonstrators injured 10 police officers, threw stones and overturned a police vehicle.
When asked for a comment, the spokesman says, “We saw this” and shares a clip of an armored officer hitting young Haredi men with a baton.
שאלתי דובר של גולדנופף להגיב על האלימות בירושלים. הוא שלח לי סרטון שבו שוטר מכה תלמידי ישיבה באלות ואמר: "אנחנו ראינו את זה" pic.twitter.com/97rfyGsbv6
— Sam Sokol (@SamuelSokol) December 18, 2025
The riot reportedly broke out after municipal inspectors issued parking tickets to several yeshiva students, and quickly realized that they were draft dodgers. When police tried to hand over the students to the Military Police, they were met with resistance from bystanders, which mushroomed into rioting, Ynet reports.
A spokesman for fellow ultra-Orthodox party Shas does not respond to a request for comment on the riot.
The Times of Israel Community.