Haredi demonstrations against the autopsy of a 13-year-old boy in Jerusalem, February 7, 2024/Photo: Israel Police
The prosecutor's office today (Wednesday) withdrew its request to analyze the body of the 13-year-old boy from Beit Shemesh, who died of unknown causes.
Yesterday, the police and the prosecutor's office demanded to carry out the procedure due to "suspicions that require an autopsy".
However, when the prosecutor's office returned it, the ZAKA announced that his body would be released for burial on the Mount of Repose in Jerusalem.
Since the state's request yesterday to carry out the procedure, dozens of ultra-Orthodox members of the ultra-Orthodox faction in Jerusalem have started protests in the city. Zaka's legal counsel, Dr. Dror Shosheim, said that there is no need to perform the autopsy.
The police explained the U-turn. The boy is an infection. Therefore, it was decided that the prosecutor's office decided to withdraw the appeal.
Haredim protest over the autopsy of a 13-year-old boy / Israel Police spokeswoman
The police explained why they insisted on performing an autopsy yesterday: "Following findings that emerged at the beginning of the investigation, the boy's body was sent for visual examination at the Institute of Forensic Medicine, this after consulting with the prosecutor's office. The goal was to determine the cause of the boy's death, due to the fact that it could not be determined with certainty in the field and findings that required examination".
The police said that after these tests, the Institute of Forensic Medicine recommended to the police in light of the findings - to perform an autopsy to determine the cause of death for sure.
Accordingly, the prosecutor's office and the police requested the execution of the autopsy from the magistrate's court, which approved it.
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Haredim protest over the autopsy of a 13-year-old boy / Israel Police spokeswoman
As mentioned, since the police announcement yesterday about the opening of the investigation and the intention to analyze the boy's body, Haredim from an extreme faction started a series of protests in Jerusalem and Beit Shemesh demanding that the procedure be stopped and that he be buried as soon as possible.
Earlier today, many protesters blocked Yehezkel Street in Jerusalem.
The police said that "some of them threw themselves on the road under the wheels of vehicles on purpose, thereby endangering themselves and the road users, and some of them damaged the traffic light on the spot."
The police added that during the officers' activity, eggs, bottles and garbage bags were thrown at them.
The demonstration was accompanied by curses at the policemen, such as "Go to Gaza" and "Nazis".
Also yesterday, the ultra-Orthodox protesters blocked the intersection of Yehzakel and Shmuel streets in Jerusalem.
Another demonstration was held in Beit Shemesh.
A suspect in a disturbance was arrested in a demonstration that also took place near the Institute of Forensic Medicine in Abu Kabir.
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Beit Shemesh
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