Thousands of hareidim held protests in Jerusalem, Bnei Brak and Ashdod Thursday, and video shows that in one incident at least, a police car was set on fire. The video was reportedly taped in the port city of Ashdod, not far from the local police station.

The video shows young hareidim setting fire to a parked police car, by lighting unidentified materials under the car's engine. No police officers can be seen in the video.

The protest in Jerusalem turned violent, and serious clashes with police took place. A weapon belonging to a Yassam policeman was stolen from him. Mounted police were used to disperse the protesters, 12 of whom were arrested.

The hareidim are protesting the arrest of a hareidi man who did not go to the IDF's Recruitment Center despite being called up to the army. Another reason for the protest is the sudden freezing of funding for all yeshivas, which was ordered retroactively by Finance Minister Yair Lapid on Wednesday.

Lapid's decision to cut funding came following a High Court ruling Tuesday, stating that the government should stop funding yeshivas with 18-20 year-old students who received draft calls and did not enlist. The ruling came despite Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon's orders to defer such steps until new laws on the issue are passed in the coming weeks.