Neturei Karta burn flags
Photo: AP
Neturei Karta burn flags on Independence Day
Believers in faith denouncing Israel's existence gather in Beit Shemesh to protest its anniversary
Members of the Neturei Karta sect were burning Israeli flags Wednesday in protest against Israel's 61st anniversary of statehood.
The protest took place during a ceremony in Beit Shemesh, near Jerusalem. Protestors carried signs saying: "We mourn Israel's 61 years of existence".
Beit Shemesh is home to dozens of families belonging to the Neturei Karta faith, which does not recognize Israel's legitimacy. Followers of the faith believe a sectarian Jewish state is blasphemous and detrimental to the coming of the Messiah.
Last week, while the people of Israel honored those who perished in the Holocaust with a moment of silence, dozens of Neturei Karta members protested in Jerusalem.
At around 10 am the protestors gathered in the city's Sabbath Square, and as the siren sounded for a moment of silence began crossing the busy street. They held signs condemning "the Zionist Holocaust Day" and clashed with police and passersby.
