Hundreds of Ethiopian Israelis Protest Police Brutality and Discrimination in Tel Aviv

Hundreds of Israelis of Ethiopian descent staged a protest against police brutality in central Tel Aviv on Sunday, July 3.  Protesters were carrying signs reading “Violent cops should be jailed” and “Racist policy.” Some signs referred to Yosef Salamsa, an Ethiopian Israeli youth who committed suicide several months after having been abused by police officers.

Demonstrators had taken to the streets to protest oppression from authorities who, they claim, have targeted the Ethiopian community for years. “We are fed up, we are the new generation!” protestors chanted throughout a number of busy Tel Aviv streets.

Protesters hold a sit-in during a protest against police brutality targeting Israelis of Ethiopian descent, Tel Aviv, July 3, 2016.

Protesters hold a sit-in during a protest against police brutality targeting Israelis of Ethiopian descent, Tel Aviv, July 3, 2016. (Photo: Activestills)

Seventeen Ethiopian activists were placed under arrest Sunday evening after police said that they had “disrupted public order” during the protest held in Tel Aviv. The demonstrators were detained after they began blocking the entrance to the South Ayalon Highway, preventing vehicles from accessing the road.

Amber Bogale, organizer of the protest, told the Yediot Ahranot newspaper: “For years, (Israel) has been depriving us of our equal rights. We serve in the army – and yet police brutality and discrimination infect all spheres of our lives.” “Police violence must stop,” she continued. “There are constantly more victims of police violence from our community.”

A little over a year ago Ethiopian Israelis staged several mass demonstrations across the country, the largest of which took place in Tel Aviv’s Rabin Square, and which ended with 46 injured, including some 20 police officers. The protests were ignited by a video that showed officers beating an Ethiopian Israeli soldier.  A proposal made by Hadash MK Dov Khenin (Joint List) to create a parliamentary commission of inquiry to examine allegations of discrimination, racism and violence against Israel’s Ethiopian community was rejected by the Knesset plenum in June 2015, despite the continuing protest movement.

Related: Posts on Ethiopian-Israeli community