Haredi protesters reportedly set up barricades outside Jerusalem’s Basimta Cafe on Saturday morning to protest its opening on Shabbat, security footage published by N12 News showed.
The incident came during the eighth consecutive week of Haredi protests against the cafe’s opening on Shabbat.
בקפה “בסמטה” בירושלים: חרדים הניחו מחסומים בכניסה לעסק@inbartvizer pic.twitter.com/XZTMeCvcXj
— החדשות – N12 (@N12News) August 22, 2026
Earlier in this week, Israel Police arrested a 75-year-old suspect on Tuesday for allegedly spray-painting graffiti on the cafe, throwing garbage at it, and damaging its lock.
The protests began on Saturday, July 4, when dozens of Haredi demonstrators, many of whom were reportedly minors, descended on the cafe in four separate waves, surrounding the building, banging on its windows, and overturning tables.
Last month, the cafe was revealed to be an official project of Jews for Jesus, a prominent organization within the broader Messianic Jewish movement, which believes in the divinity of Jesus while claiming to practice Judaism, a combination that no mainstream Jewish denomination considers compatible.
Several politicians have participated in counterprotests in recent weeks.
MKs participate in counterprotests
Earlier this month, Democrats Party chairman Yair Golan, Party CEO Omer Lubaton Granot, and MK Meirav Cohen joined one of the counterprotests.
In a post on X, Cohen addressed the ongoing dispute surrounding the cafe and described meeting its owner, Yoel Ben David.
“When he opened the place on Shabbat, emissaries came to him and offered him money so that he would close,” Cohen wrote. “He said ‘no thank you,’ and from that moment he has been subjected to demonstrations outside his café every Shabbat.”
“We came to strengthen him and thank him for his steadfastness in the name of the values of freedom and liberalism,” she added. “Jerusalem belongs to everyone, Israel belongs to everyone, and besides that, the coffee is really good.”
יואל הוא הבעלים של בית קפה ״בסמטה״ בירושלים.
כשהוא פתח את המקום בשבת הגיעו אליו שליחים שהציעו לו כסף כדי שהוא יסגור. הוא אמר לא תודה ומרגע זה סופג מדי שבת הפגנות מחוץ לבית הקפה שלו.
באנו לחזק ולהודות לו על עמידתו האיתנה בשם ערכי החופש והליברליות.
ירושלים היא של כולם,
ישראל היא של… pic.twitter.com/nk279u7Ka1— מירב כהן – Meirav Cohen (@cohen_meirav) August 8, 2026
Liberman: ‘Live and let live’
Yisrael Beytenu chairman Avigdor Liberman also joined Basimta Cafe supporters earlier this month, as haredi demonstrators protested outside for the fifth consecutive week.
Liberman condemned the protesters, used the opportunity to campaign ahead of the upcoming election, and called for Haredi men to enlist in the military.
“I believe above all in the principle of live and let live. Drinking coffee on a Saturday morning cannot become an act of civic courage,” Liberman said.
“The vandalism we see behind me only proves that these guys need to direct their energy against Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Houthis, but not here in Jerusalem against peaceful citizens,” he added, referring to the ultra-Orthodox protesters.
Liberman then said the protesters would be required to serve in the military if his party came to power.
“When we come to power, they will not have time to demonstrate here. Everyone will be running through basic training!”
Alon Hachman, Maariv Online, Theia Chatelle, and Tzvi Jasper contributed to this report.
