Record numbers at anti-government rallies

For the tenth consecutive Saturday night, protesters against the government’s overhaul of Israel’s legal system were out in numbers on the streets of Tel Aviv and other cities. Of the rally in Tel Aviv, the protest organizers said, “From estimates by television experts, cross-checking of film from drones and fixed cameras, and talks with the police, it emerges that 240,000 people took part in the demonstration, a record number since the campaign began.” About 50,000 people demonstrated in Haifa, which is also reckoned to be a record number.

After the protests by IDF reservists last week against the government’s plans for the legal system, and the vitriolic condemnations that these protests drew from members the coalition, many of last night’s speeches focused on the role of the army in the state. Speaking at the demonstration in Beersheva, which about 10,000 people are estimated to have attended, Leader of the Opposition Yair Lapid said: “A government that has in two parties whose entire raison d’etre is refusal of army service and draft evasion, let it not preach at us. Israel is in the greatest crisis in its history. A wave of terrorist attacks is hitting us. Money is fleeing the country. Here in the south, personal security collapses to new lows by the month. Yesterday, the Iranians signed an agreement with Saudi Arabia that will inject billions of dollars into their nuclear program. The only thing that interests the government is to continue to shred Israeli democracy and the unity of the people of Israel.

“If, tomorrow morning, the Knesset Constitution, Law and Justice Committee convenes and continues this crazy legislation, it will be a spitting in the face of the president, in the face of every citizen who believes in the unity of the people of Israel.”

Lapid was referring to President Isaac Herzog’s call on Thursday evening for the judicial overhaul legislation to be abandoned and for talks to take place on a compromise proposal that he intended to put forward.

Among the speakers at the main demonstration in Tel Aviv were former chief of the Israel Police Moshe Karadi, former judge and ombudsman of the State Attorney’s Office Hila Gerstel, Liron Damri, co-founder of Israeli startup Forter, and Ora Peled Nakash, the first female officer in the Israel Navy.

Another “Day of Resistance” is planned for this Thursday. Last Thursday, protesters blocked roads around Israel and attempted to prevent Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu from reaching Ben Gurion Airport for a flight to Italy on an official visit. Netanyahu was compelled to go to the airport by helicopter.

Published by Globes, Israel business news – en.globes.co.il – on March 12, 2023.

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