Rabbi Amram Blau, leader of the ultra-pious Neturei Karta, and 12 of his followers were held in police custody yesterday when police broke up an attempted demonstration against alleged Sabbath desecrations. All of the detained Neturei Karta demonstrators were released at dusk, when the Sabbath was over.
As a result of last week’s riot, when police dispersed 5,000 demonstrators and one man died while at least 20 others were injured, 500 policemen, including not only city forces but also frontier police, were concentrated in the city at dawn yesterday to halt any demonstration that might be staged.
About 8 o’clock, Rabbi Blau and a number of his followers started congregating in the trouble areas where last week’s riot occurred. Chief of Police Levy Abrahamov warned the group that they must not cross from the sidewalks onto the streets. The demonstrators were allowed to shout slogans and hurl verbal insults at passing motorists. However, when they tried to rush the police forces and block traffic, Rabbi Blau and some of his followers were taken into custody.
According to Chief Abrahamov, there have been 20 Sabbath demonstrations in Jerusalem this year, 18 of them organized by the Neturei Karta. Mr. Abrahamov declares that the Neturei Karta sect consists of only about 100 families, and has only about 40 “actives” on its rolls.
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The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
