Eliyahu Herbst - father of six and grandfather of two - has been freed from prison, after spending over nine weeks in prison on charges of an anti-disengagement road-blocking. He was ordered released on Tuesday after a judge ruled that no evidence was found that he violated the law.

Herbst could have been released earlier with various restrictions such as a ban on attending demonstrations. He refused to accept such limitations, however, claiming that he must not be punished for exercising his moral right to protest democratically.

Though he served as "elder statesman" of the many youths arrested for road-blocking, he suffered greatly during his incarceration. On the way to his Supreme Court hearing earlier this month, a policeman brutally pulled Herbst out of the car by his handcuffs, causing him to fall on the ground, and he was then dragged on the ground by his handcuffs until he was thrown into another car. He was then placed in solitary confinement without his belongings or a change of clothes, suffering humiliation in the process.

Yesterday, the Supreme Court ordered him released without bail and without restrictions.

Another case has not ended as happily, however. Rabbi Rachamim Nissimi of Nof Ayalon was sentenced yesterday to three months in prison for his role in blocking a highway near Modiin in the framework of the anti-expulsion protests. MK Aryeh Eldad called the verdict "the burial of Israel's democracy."

Rabbi Nissimi was arrested three weeks ago and was charged with attacking a policeman, illegal assembly and resisting arrest. In a precedent-setting decision, he was sentenced to three months in prison, as well as six additional months of probation.

His daughter Yael told Arutz-7 today, "My father did nothing to justify such a punishment. He arrived at the Shilat Junction merely to give out orange ribbons. Some people there wanted to block the road, but they didn’t succeed, because of all the policemen there - and he certainly didn't block the road. Suddenly, some policemen jumped on him without warning and with terrible brutality; we have pictures showing this. The only proof that they have that he attacked a policeman is some policemen who simply framed him; there's no other word."

Yael said that the family soon realized that there was no choice but to agree to a plea-bargain, in light of the government's strong stand: "Sharon wants to carry out the disengagement with as few as possible opponents, and we realized that the prosecution would never agree to relax the charges... They were very tough; at first they wanted seven months in prison, but finally they agreed to three months... He was in the Disengagement Wing of Massiyahu Prison, which he said was very positive, but now he will be in the Criminal Wing..."

Honenu, the civil rights organization providing legal aid to those arrested in connection with anti-expulsion activities, estimates that there are currently several dozen youths still in prison in this connection.