From the Liveblog of
Tuesday, January 20, 2026
Route 4 opened after ultra-Orthodox protest; police say officers called ‘Nazis’
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on GoogleStav Levaton is a military reporter for The Times of Israel
Police say they cleared an ultra-Orthodox demonstration on Route 4 near Bnei Brak after protesters blocked traffic, clashed with officers and hurled insults at police, including calling them “Nazis.”
Demonstrators were protesting the now canceled autopsies of two babies who died at an unlicensed daycare in the ultra-Orthodox Jerusalem neighborhood of Romema.
According to police, protesters sat on the roadway, threw stones and used their bodies to block vehicles, endangering both themselves and others on the road.
Police say they were forced to use crowd-control measures and extract vehicles trapped in the demonstration, after they declared the protest unlawful and issued warnings that were ignored by participants.
המשטרה הפעילה בהפגנה בכביש 4 אלימות רבה, ובין היתר מפקד תחנת בני ברק תועד חונק את אחד המפגינים. בניסוף, פרש הצליף במפגין שישב על הרצפה. זאת במסגרת הפגנת החרדים נגד נתיחת גופותיהם של שני התינוקות שמתו אתמול במעון בירושלים, המתרחשת בעיר ובבית שמש.
(יאיר פולדש, הארץ) pic.twitter.com/oxpXpMJtYU
— חדר מלחמה (@waroomisrael) January 20, 2026
One protester was arrested on suspicion of assaulting a police officer, police say.
All lanes of Route 4 have been reopened to traffic.
Police emphasize that while the right to protest is a “cornerstone of a democratic state,” they will not allow disturbances that threaten public safety or disrupt freedom of movement.
The Times of Israel Community.