Israel Police Reject Claims Detained Protesters Were Denied Shelter During Houthi Missile Attack

Israel Police respond to allegations that 17 detainees were denied access to shelters during a Houthi missile attack, citing overcrowding at Habima Square.

By: AXL Media

Published: Apr 4, 2026, 6:14 PM EDT

Source: Information for this report was sourced from The Times of Israel

Disputed Safety Measures During Aerial Alerts

A major controversy has erupted regarding the safety of 17 demonstrators arrested during Saturday’s anti-war rally at Habima Square. Following a Houthi ballistic missile launch from Yemen that triggered sirens across Tel Aviv, activists accused the Israel Police of keeping detainees on a transport bus rather than allowing them to enter the site's primary reinforced shelter. In a statement released late Saturday night, the police countered these claims, stating that the decision to relocate the bus was driven by "significant congestion" at the entrances to the Habima underground complex. According to the official police account, officers risked their own lives to move the detainees to a position between buildings that they deemed a safer alternative under the circumstances.

Conflict Over Visual Evidence

The police narrative has been immediately challenged by footage emerging from the detainees themselves. Videos recorded from inside the "safer location" show the protesters gathered in a room characterized by extensive glass windows and doors—features that offer virtually no protection against the concussive force or shrapnel of a ballistic missile impact. "There is glass here, glass there… there is no security whatsoever," one detainee can be heard saying in the recording. The discrepancy between the police's description of a secure evacuation and the visual reality of an glass-heavy environment has fueled further criticism from civil rights groups monitoring the treatment of protesters during the ongoing Iran war.

High Court Order and the Threshold of Legality

The arrests that led to this situation were the result of a direct clash over crowd size and judicial orders. Earlier on Saturday, the High Court of Justice had issued a specific directive protecting the right to protest, forbidding police from dispersing any gathering at Habima Square with fewer than 600 participants. Police officials claim that once the rally exceeded this specific numerical threshold, the gathering was declared illegal, justifying the use of force and the subsequent 17 arrests. However, protest organizers argue that the police used the 600-person cap as a pretext to shut down a legally protected assembly, leading to the disorderly conduct charges.