Two haredi soldiers walking through the ultra-religious Mea Shearim neighborhood in Jerusalem Sunday night became the focal point of a violent protest carried out by angry residents in the area, Israeli media reported Monday. The protesters, belonging to an extreme sect of haredi Judaism, threw rocks at the soldiers and lit trash cans on fire. Police and firefighting units were called to the scene to calm the crowd and put out the fires. The soldiers managed to escape the neighborhood without injury. "We condemn all the violence that transpired. This is not our way, the [violent protesters] were fringe elements," spokesperson for last week's 30,000-strong haredi protest against IDF enlistment, Pini Rosenberg, said. Rosenberg played down the Israeli media reports of the event. "Also, I happened to be present in the area and the reports of what took place have been blown completely out of proportion," he said. Some 30,000 members of the ultra-Orthodox community gathered at the Jerusalem IDF recruitment offices on Thursday to protest against the "enlistment decree" hanging over their heads. The protest comes as the Peri committee (named after Science and Technology Minister Yaakov Peri from Yesh Atid) prepares to release its conclusions as to how to draft greater numbers of haredim. Protest organizers had called for a peaceful demonstration, but police reported several violent confrontations on Thursday. Protesters apparently started throwing blunt objects and stones at police, lightly wounding eight officers. Some of the wounded officers were taken to the Shaare Zedek Medical Center for treatment. Some demonstrators set garbage cans on fire, and police responded by firing smoke and stun grenades. Ten demonstrators were arrested during the disturbances.
