Ethiopian-Israeli rally against police brutality turns violent

Thousands protested in Tel Aviv against police brutality following the killing of an Ethiopian man by police two weeks ago, with the demonstration ending in a violent confrontation between protesters and law enforcement.

By Associated Press and World Israel News Staff

Ethiopian-Israelis and their supporters protested in Tel Aviv against police violence in response to an incident two weeks ago in which an Ethiopian man was killed.

Demonstrators blocked a major highway in Tel Aviv on Wednesday and paraded through major avenues of the city protesting what they consider to be systemic police mistreatment of the minority group.

They carried signs saying “police are killing Beita Yisrael,” a Hebrew term for the Ethiopian Jewish community.

While the majority of the protest remained peaceful, dozens of youths confronted law enforcement toward the end of the event, leaving four policemen injured, according to Kan news.

The youth throw bottles and rocks, and set garbage cans on fire, prompting the police to take measures to ensure public safety.

Earlier this month, a policeman shot dead 24-year-old Yehuda Biadga, a mentally distressed man wielding a knife, in Bat Yam. Israel’s Justice Ministry is investigating the incident.

Biadga’s family accused police of excessive force, and protest organizers called the incident “the straw that broke the camel’s back” with regard to perceived discrimination by Israeli authorities.