Bethlehem – Ma’an/Agencies – Hundreds of secular Israelis protested in Jerusalem on Saturday against the recent ultra-Orthodox Jewish campaign to shut down businesses working on the Jewish Sabbath in the city.

Secular Israelis waved the Israeli flag and held banners proclaiming “We are sick of [religious] coercion” in response to weeks of Jewish ultra-Orthodox protests in Jerusalem, that have often turned violent, against the American company Intel’s opening of office hours on the Sabbath and the Jerusalem Municipality’s decision to allow a parking lot near the Old City to function on the day of rest.

According to Reuters, Israeli police present at Saturday's demonstration reported no violence.

A Palestinian photojournalist, Ata Uweisat, said he was assaulted and his car was damaged by ultra-Orthodox demonstrators during one of the previous protests at the Intel offices as he tried to cover a rally that turned violent.