Director Hagai Levi was arrested on Thursday evening while participating in a demonstration on Shaul Hamelech Street in Tel Aviv, during which he documented the police and demonstrators.
He was released after about two hours.
Levi is one of the most successful and respected Israeli creators in the world. Behind him are series such as In Therapy, Our Boys, Scenes from a Marriage and The Affair, which won the Golden Globe.
Levi’s statements
“There was a relatively small demonstration in Shaul Hamelech corner of Begin,” Levi told Walla! culture. “At a certain point, it seemed to me that police got tired of containing the demonstrations, and they demanded that everyone get on the sidewalk. Then they started arresting protesters. I filmed them arresting people, and it seems to me that it didn’t sit well with them. Turns out I was detained because I was standing on the road when they wanted everyone to get on the sidewalk, but the truth is that I was standing right next to the sidewalk. I didn’t understand why I was stopped like that.”
“They started arresting protesters. I filmed them arresting people, and it seems to me that it didn’t sit well with them.”
Hagai Levi
“I was in the cell of a prison for about two hours. It’s a bit stressful, a prison, I have to say, not fun,” adds Levi, “we were about 4-5 people there. Then suddenly a message came that everyone had to be released. So they just let us go.
“It was disturbing also because I’m a bit claustrophobic, and also because I left a little girl at home alone, and they wouldn’t let me call her. They didn’t take me to a police station, and you’ll hear that some people are detained overnight and for longer, some people are beaten, etc. I got off cheap.”
In total, 76 people were arrested today in the “Day of Paralysis” demonstrations against the judicial reforms in Tel Aviv alone. Of these, 73 were released under limited conditions and three will be brought before a judge tomorrow to discuss the extension of their detention.
