Haredi protester bit officer’s leg during rally against Jerusalem light rail construction — police

A Haredi protester bit an officer in the leg during a stormy demonstration against light rail construction in Jerusalem, police say.

In footage from the protest, officers were seen using batons and stun grenades to disperse hundreds of demonstrators as they attempted to break into a construction site in the capital’s ultra-Orthodox Mea Shearim neighborhood.

Some of the protesters brought their young children with them in strollers, leading police to accuse them of “cynically and dangerously exploiting toddlers.”

According to police, the demonstrators sought to use them as a “human shield” against security forces.

After police’s commander at the scene declared the demonstration unlawful, officers began to use force against protesters, hitting their arms and legs with batons and chucking stun grenades despite the presence of young children.

One officer was seen kneeling on a demonstrator’s head, while others were filmed trying to separate the children in the strollers from adult protesters by force.

תיעוד חריג ומטריד מהפגנה בירושלים מעורר סערה בחברה החרדית, שוטרים הופכים עגלה עם תינוק ומכים מי שמנסה לחלץ מהם את העגלה. pic.twitter.com/iRDNFTKqES

— שילה פריד???????? (@shilofreid) March 19, 2026

After footage spread online showing police beating on a man who had been gripping one of the strollers, Jerusalem District commander Avshalom Peled ordered the officers ejected from the scene, bringing them in for questioning about the incident.

During the dispersal, one protester bit a policeman’s leg, causing him injury. Two other officers were hurt and required medical treatment, but none were known to be hospitalized as a result of their injuries.