Three female residents of Herzliya were arrested on Friday on suspicion of trespassing, after they placed leaflets with pictures of hostages on chairs in the synagogue in Herzliya in which MK Yuli Edelstein (Likud) normally prays.
The incident occurred on Thursday afternoon. The three entered the synagogue, placed leaflets which read "Let my people go!" on the chairs and left the synagogue, without interacting with the worshipers.
Worshipers who arrived at the synagogue in the morning and noticed the leaflets contacted the police. After several hours, the three women were located and arrested.
The Israel Police said that the suspects, a 47-year-old woman and two pensioners from Herzliya, were arrested on suspicion of trespassing into a synagogue in the city and distributing flyers there. According to the statement, during the investigation, the police noticed flyers scattered inside the synagogue with pictures of the hostages on them. Investigations led to the identification of the female suspects who were located and arrested.
Attorney Ran Tagar, who represents the suspects, said, "They arrested three women whose only sin is that they entered an open synagogue while there was a bar mitzvah going on and placed leaflets on the worshipers' seats. I have no words to describe the disgust at the conduct of the police. This is a political arrest. Three women are at the police station, with handcuffs on their hands and feet, as if they were members of a criminal organization. I really hope that the Israel Police will get it together and release them at the conclusion of the investigation."
The three women were released on Friday evening and were ordered not to contact each other for 15 days, and not to approach the synagogue during this period. The three were also forbidden to contact MK Edelstein.
(Israel National News' North American desk is keeping you updated until the start of Shabbat in New York. The time posted automatically on all Israel National News articles, however, is Israeli time.)