Jewish man is left critically injured after being branded a 'snitch' by ultra-Orthodox rioters in Brooklyn who attacked him and a photographer for recording COVID-19 violations amid spike in coronavirus cases
Two Jewish men were either attacked or chased down by ultra-Orthodox Jewish protesters who took to New York City streets to demonstrate against Gov Andrew Cuomo's new restrictions on schools, businesses and houses of worship in nine neighborhoods with surging COVID-19 cases.
According to Mordy Getz, his brother, Berish Getz, was 'critically injured by anti-mask Hasidic rioters' on Tuesday night.
The 34-year-old victim was reportedly recording video of the crowd in Borough Park, Brooklyn, when some of them started calling him a 'snitch' and demanded that he stop.
A relative told the New York Post that Berish tried to avoid harm, but a mob caught up to him and started assaulting the victim, who is also Jewish.
According to Mordy Getz, his brother, Berish Getz (seen on a stretcher), was 'critically injured by anti-mask Hasidic rioters' on Tuesday night
Local police said three men hit Berish in the neck, head and face during the demonstration at the corner of 14th Avenue and 46th Street around 1.30am, according to the Post.
Berish's brother shared horrifying video of the victim being lifted onto a stretcher before being transported to a local hospital. Berish was not responsive during the transport, his brother said.
'We want full investigation and prosecution,' Mordy Getz tweeted.
Meanwhile, a photographer, who is also Jewish, said he was chased down by a crowd of screaming Orthodox Jewish protesters in Borough Park.
Bruce Schaff told the Post on Wednesday that he was left 'terrified' from the ordeal.
'Even the people trying to help me were telling me to turn my camera off, and seemed like they might attack me once I did,' Schaff said.
'Out of all the protests I've been to I've never seen this level of violence from protesters toward members of the press, photographers, or anyone for that matter,' he added.
According to video shared with the newspaper, a police supervisor told Schaff to leave the area as Orthodox Jewish community members screamed and tried to cover his camera.
Meanwhile, photographer, Bruce Schaff, who is also Jewish, said he was chased down by a crowd of screaming Orthodox Jewish protesters in Borough Park (incident pictured)
'Stop snapping! Who are sending these videos to?! Get out of my neighborhood!' the crowd yelled. 'Erase every photo now! You're an anti-Semite!'
Schaff said he was kicked and punched after falling to the ground, but he managed to escape and make his way to a police detail.
He said the officers then took him to safety in the back of a police SUV.
'I've been covering protests for the last 6 months and nothing has been as bad as this,' Schaff told the police.
Anger and resentment flared Wednesday in New York City neighborhoods facing new coronavirus shutdowns.
Residents said the state is unfairly targeting Orthodox Jewish communities as it tries to stamp out hot spots before they spread.
Protests erupted in Brooklyn's Borough Park neighborhood Tuesday night after Cuomo announced new restrictions on schools, businesses and houses of worship in some parts of the city and state.
'I understand you need to wear a mask. I understand you social distance. What bothers me is: You pick on the good people,' said Brooklyn resident Meir Nimni.
He argued that Orthodox Jewish gatherings were being singled out for a clampdown, noting that huge crowds convened this spring for racial injustice protests where destruction and violence sometimes broke out.
'Everybody here wants to live, and everybody cares' about stopping the virus, Nimni said. But he saw a double standard that's 'just not fair.'
Nearby, Renee Jeremias said authorities 'have absolutely no right to shut us down'.
Anger and resentment flared Wednesday in New York City neighborhoods facing new coronavirus shutdowns. Residents said the state is unfairly targeting Orthodox Jewish communities as it tries to stamp out hot spots before they spread
Members of the Jewish Orthodox community gather to listen to an interview conducted by a journalist on a street corner on Wednesday in the Borough Park neighborhood of Brooklyn
Rabbi David Zwiebel, executive vice president of an Orthodox Jewish umbrella organization called Agudath Israel of America, said the group was contemplating a court fight if the state wasn't open to changing a new 10-person limit for houses of worship in areas where new coronavirus cases are most concentrated.
The restriction comes amid the Jewish holiday of Sukkot. Many large events this season have already been canceled or rearranged, Zwiebel said, but the 10-person cap 'would basically wipe out the entirety of the spirit of the holiday.'
'We are now, you know, on the precipice of an enormous sense of despair,' Zwiebel said.
Cuomo insists the new restrictions are based solely on science and coronavirus case clusters in areas that, in his view, have flouted the state´s existing virus-safety rules.
After becoming the nation's deadliest coronavirus hot spot this spring, New York wrestled its outbreak down to a steady and relatively low level over the summer.
But infections have been rising in recent weeks, and hospitalizations are starting to follow.
There has been an average of 659 COVID-19 patients in hospitals statewide over the past week, up from 426 for the week ending September 6, Cuomo said. During an early April peak, nearly 19,000 coronavirus patients were hospitalized statewide.
He said a few areas are disproportionately driving the worrisome trends, with over 5 per cent of coronavirus tests coming back positive in 20 hot spot ZIP codes, compared with about 1.3 per cent statewide.
In one Brooklyn ZIP code, 18 per cent of everyone who has gotten a coronavirus test since October 1 has tested positive, compared with a rate of about 3.9 per cent citywide, according to city data.
The Democratic governor said wider 'spread is inevitable' if the clusters don't get under control.
'There's always opposition. And we move forward anyways. And we´ll continue to do that,' he said on a conference call with reporters.
The new rules, set to take effect Friday, involve parts of Brooklyn and Queens in New York City, sections of Orange and Rockland counties in the Hudson Valley and an area within Binghamton, near the Pennsylvania border. Many of the areas are home to large enclaves of Orthodox Jews.
The plan sets up color-coded, concentric zones where the severity of the measures varies. In the hearts of the hot spots, schools can't teach in person, and all nonessential businesses will be closed, among other measures. Surrounding areas face less stringent restrictions, such as limits on gatherings and restaurant diners.
Cuomo insists the new restrictions are based solely on science and coronavirus case clusters in areas that, in his view, have flouted the state´s existing virus-safety rules
In one Brooklyn ZIP code, 18 per cent of everyone who has gotten a coronavirus test since October 1 has tested positive, compared with a rate of about 3.9 per cent citywide, according to city data
Orthodox Jewish residents aren't the only ones complaining. The leader of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn, Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio, said churches 'fervently object' to being told to reduce capacity after not having any outbreaks since reopening in July.
Business interests are dismayed, too.
'To shut down almost all of south Brooklyn and punish small businesses that have reopened safely will be an overwhelming setback to the borough's economic recovery,' Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce President Randy Peers said in a statement.
Criticism sharpened into street protests Tuesday night, when videos posted on social media showed hundreds of Orthodox Jewish men gathered in the streets of Borough Park, in some cases setting bonfires by burning masks.
Video posted on social media showed a crowd swarming and knocking down a man holding a camera. Another video showed protesters rushing another man who had been filming the unrest, and pummeling him.
A relative told The Associated Press he was taken to the hospital unconscious but was doing 'much better' Wednesday and was expected to be released. The relative spoke on the condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals.
Police said there were no arrests.
Mayor Bill de Blasio told opponents of the new rules to respect them and follow police instructions.
'There'll be consequences' if people don't, the Democratic mayor added at a virtual news briefing Wednesday.
The state already faced a lawsuit this year from religious observers who questioned why peaceful mass protests were able to occur while religious groups once faced stricter gathering limits than businesses.
Under a federal court ruling that the state is fighting, unlimited outdoor religious gatherings with social distancing are currently allowed.
That ruling also means both religious groups and businesses currently face a 50 per cent indoor capacity limit, though New York City restaurants are limited to 25 per cent capacity indoors.
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