Seven arrested for disrupting ceremonies, tearing down flags during Memorial Day

Police arrested seven people in the cities of Beit Shemesh and Lod Monday night for allegedly disturbing public order and “desecrating state symbols” as Israel marked Memorial Day with a nationwide siren and ceremonies across the country.

At the same time, right-wing activists disrupted a joint Israeli-Palestinian Memorial Day event in Tel Aviv, though no arrests were made.

In Beit Shemesh, west of Jerusalem, police said they arrested two ultra-Orthodox extremists as they were tearing down flags from city lampposts.

Video of the incident appeared to show the suspects tearing down the Beit Shemesh city flag, which bears a resemblance to the state flag. One suspect then tries to remove an Israeli flag before being whisked away by another person on the scene.

In its statement, Israel Police called the removal of the flag “an ugly and despicable act,” and said that the suspects committed the offense “intentionally on the eve of Memorial Day, when citizens of the country are attending ceremonies in memory of the fallen soldiers of Israel.”

The suspects were transferred for questioning by police, who will then decide whether to request an extension to their remand.

שוטרי תחנת בית שמש במחוז ירושלים עצרו לפני זמן קצר 2 חשודים, שנתפסו בשעת מעשה כשהם תולשים דגלי ישראל בערב יום הזיכרון pic.twitter.com/Z8kCllBCnF

— יעקב הרשקוביץ | Yaakov hershkowitz (@yaakov_hershko) April 20, 2026

In Lod, police arrested a mother and her four children after they allegedly shouted and caused a disruption in the mixed Arab-Jewish city during the one-minute siren that rang out nationwide at 8 p.m., marking the beginning of Memorial Day.

According to reports, the five suspects whistled, cheered, and shouted as the ceremony was being held, disrupting the event and prompting several complaints to police.

Police then detained the five and took them to a local station for questioning.

“The Israel Police views any violation of memorial ceremonies and public order with great severity,” it said following the events. “We will continue to act with zero tolerance against lawbreakers, in order to preserve the honor of the fallen heroes and public safety.”

עשרות תומכי ממשלה בהם מרדכי דוד, רמי בן יהודה ואחרים עקבו וקיללו משתתפים בצפיה בטקס הזיכרון הישראלי פלסטיני בקפה שפירא בדרום ת״א. במקום היו רק חמישה שוטרים שליוו את המפגינים למכוניות תוך שהם סופגים קללות ״ערב רב״ ו״שמאלנים בוגדים״

בוידאו, ניסיון צופי הטקס לברוח לרכבים עם ליווי… pic.twitter.com/izMfurx4rg

Advertisement

— Bar Peleg (@bar_peleg) April 20, 2026

Meanwhile, far-right provocateurs Mordechai David and Shefi Paz, as well as other activists, disrupted a screening of the alternative Israeli-Palestinian Memorial Day ceremony that was held Monday night, chanting “Death to Arabs” and “Death to leftists” and blaring loud music from speakers just as the memorial siren ended.

According to reports, David, Paz and dozens more arrived at a cafe in south Tel Aviv’s Shapira neighborhood to interrupt a screening of the event, which was being held live nearby in a limited venue in Jaffa whose location was kept secret.

According to the Ynet news site, the demonstrators yelled, “Your mother is a whore,” and chanted for the deaths of Arabs and “leftists,” while also playing loud music shortly after the siren rang out.

No arrests were made following the disruption of the screening.

Ariela Karmel contributed to this report.