The city of Lod demolished an illegally built building in the Pardes Snir neighborhood of the city earlier this month which led to rising tensions between the city’s Arab residents and the law enforcement officers throughout the city. These tensions came to a boiling point o Thursday when Arab residents attacked Shimon Dahan who serves as the city’s Chief Superintendent.

The attack came during a demonstration which turned violent very quickly. During the demonstration, 11 Arab residents were arrested for causing damage to police property and attacking law enforcement officers.

A second incident occurred during a separate demonstration where a police officer was lightly injured after Arab residents pelted him and other officers with rocks. During that protest, two people were arrested for attacking officers and disrupting the peace.

In a statement issued by the local police spokesperson, the police said: “We will allow freedom of protest, but we will not allow residents to harm law enforcement officers, breach public order, or cause damage to the normal routine in the city.”

(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)