Jerusalem – At Least 47 Officers Wounded, 60 Arrested As Ethiopian Israeli Protests Turn Violent

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    A car is seen on fire during a protest following the death of 19-year-old Ethiopian, Solomon Tekah who was shot and killed few days ago in Kiryat Haim by an off-duty police officer, in Tel Aviv, July 2, 2019. Photo by Flash90 Jerusalem -Thousands of Israelis protested Tuesday against alleged police brutality toward Ethiopian Israelis across the country after police shot dead an Ethiopian Israeli teen.

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    Demonstrators blocked highways around the country, including a major thoroughfare through central Tel Aviv and the main highway into Jerusalem, snarling traffic late into the night. Protesters burned tires and held signs calling for justice. In Tel Aviv, a protester set a car on fire and demonstrators clashed with police.

    Police said officers arrested 60 people believed involved in disturbances and at least 47 officers were wounded in clashes with protesters.

    The protesters, led by activists from the country’s Ethiopian minority, demonstrated against perceived systematic discrimination by police toward the community after an off-duty officer shot and killed Solomon Teka, an 18-year-old Ethiopian Israeli, in a Haifa suburb on Sunday.

    Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a statement expressing sympathy for the Ethiopian community and acknowledging that “there are problems that need to be solved,” but warning demonstrators that the authorities “will not tolerate the blocking of roads.”

    Thousands attended Teka’s funeral Tuesday. Police said the officer was arrested and was placed in protective custody by court order.

    Ethiopian Israeli lawmakers and protesters, and Teka’s family have demanded that the involved officer be held accountable.
    Ethiopian Israelis and supporters protest following the death of 19-year-old Ethiopian, Solomon Tekah who was shot and killed few days ago in Kiryat Haim by an off-duty police officer, in Jerusalem on July 2, 2019. Photo by Yonatan Sindel/Flash90
    “I hope that he will be the last victim,” David Teka, Solomon’s father, said at the funeral. “We demand that the murderer receive what he deserves and justice is done.”

    Ethiopian Jews began arriving in large numbers in the 1970s and many were airlifted to Israel in clandestine operations in the 1980s and ’90s during periods of unrest. Today, the Ethiopian community is estimated at approximately 150,000, or around 2 percent of the country’s population, according to the Central Bureau of Statistics.

    While some of its members have made strides in certain fields, many Ethiopian Israelis complain of racism, lack of opportunity, endemic poverty and routine police harassment.

    That frustration turned to public outcry and mass protests in 2015 after a police officer was filmed beating a uniformed Ethiopian Israeli soldier, and there have been sporadic demonstrations since.

    Protesters say that in multiple instances of perceived police brutality, officers were not properly held accountable.

    “What you see here is the frustration of an entire community that for 40 years is suffering discrimination,” a protester who identified himself only as Hanan told Kan, Israel’s public television.


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    9 Comments
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    4 years ago

    The problem of discrimination against the Ethiopians, in housing, jobs, as well as mistreatment by the cops, has festered for decades. Even Lucy Aharish, an Israeli commentator on Israeli Television, has complained about this problem. Yet, there are those on this site, including the one who calls himself “TrumpinWhiteHouse”, who calls them “thugs”.

    thegreatfixer
    thegreatfixer
    4 years ago

    its all about Culture!!!! the Jewish Culture!! tell me how many Religious Ethiopians were there VIOLENTLY protesting? i think you can blame zionism they were brought over / saved and given NO Religion or had what they did have taken from them its like the Yemanites the zionist suppressed their ability to be interrogated into a proper sustainable society called being Jewish and without at least knowing what they are not doing its going to fail. and i feel sad for them. they came and were ripped off the the secular zionist

    triumphinwhitehouse
    triumphinwhitehouse
    4 years ago

    typical ghetto thugs just like in the projects these are the same non jewish bantu as ilhan Omar, back home theyd be starving fi food the ethiopians are a feel good project of liberal uja Jews who like NYC tourists to Florida bring back cute baby alligators who then become dangerous mo better than trayvon or eric garner or the central park rapists all criminal thugs

    Cixelsyd_Wnosanoy
    Cixelsyd_Wnosanoy
    4 years ago

    You sound like a stereotypical apologist for racism in 1965 Birmingham, Alabama

    4 years ago

    Stop downgrading complaints of mistreatment by the cops. Unless you’ve walked the walk, and been subject to harassment by cops, you have no right judging the Ethiopians. Also, not all of them are lawbreakers; stop painting all of them with the same brush, you asinine, and bigoted racist fool!

    4 years ago

    To: #4 - You are also (similar to your friend #3), a bigoted, racist, asinine, jackass! Also, learn how to write proper English sentences!