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Israeli officers won’t face charges as riots continue in case of Jewish teen killed in police chase

Some 24 demonstrators were arrested and 15 officers were injured.

By Lauren Marcus, World Israel News

The four police officers who engaged in a high-speed police chase which led to the death of 16-year-old Bat Ayin resident Ahuvia Sandak will not face criminal charges, Channel 12 News reported Saturday evening.

The announcement came as demonstrators, calling for an independent investigation into Sandak’s death, violently clashed with officers during a protest in Jerusalem.

Some 24 demonstrators were arrested and 15 officers were injured. Protesters reportedly blocked roads and public transportation, set garbage bins on fire, threw rocks at officers and a police bus, and chanted: “A Jew does not kill another Jew.”

Officers on horseback attempted to break up the protest. The police eventually used water cannons to disperse the protesters.

Saturday night’s skirmishes marked the latest in a series of protests over Sandak’s death that have rocked the Jewish state. In protests last week, scores of demonstrators were arrested after allegedly attacking a car with an Arab family that was driving near the protest.

Footage has also emerged of police officers beating and roughly handling protesters, with one cell phone video showing a police officer hurling a youth into the road, where he narrowly escaped being hit by a moving car.

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A senior security officer complained to Kan News that MKs and rabbis were not publicly speaking out against the demonstrations. “They should act responsibly but they do nothing,” he said.

“These are not demonstrations – these are violent riots,” he added. He explained that the police are working hard to “stop the anarchy, but nothing can be done beyond spot arrests.”

He said that most protesters picked up by the police are released after a few hours, without charges filed against them.

Channel 12 News reported that the other youths present in the vehicle with Sandak will be indicted in the coming days, which may spark another round of protests.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu recently called Sandak’s parents to offer his condolences, inviting them to visit his Jerusalem office. Sandak’s parents allegedly turned down the invitation and asked Netanyahu to come to their home in Bat Ayin instead.