Haredi deserter punches officer, barricades with yeshiva students in Beit Shemesh

During Simchat Torah celebrations in Beit Shemesh, police responding to a knife report were met with violence: a Haredi deserter punched an officer, then barricaded himself with dozens of yeshiva students. Rabbis reportedly ordered 'not to surrender'; a police car tire was punctured and a trash can set on fire. This marks an escalation in Haredi community tensions with Israeli authorities, though the initial knife report remains unconfirmed.