Demonstrators have voiced outrage over the country’s hotly-debated judicial reform and a surging crime rate in the Arab community
Protesters lift flags and placards during a demonstration against the Israeli government’s judicial overhaul plan in Tel Aviv, on August 26, 2023. © JACK GUEZ / AFP
Thousands of Israelis rallied against the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Saturday evening as demonstrations against a controversial judicial overhaul entered their 34th week.
As in recent months, the protests swept across the entire nation, engulfing Tel Aviv, West Jerusalem, Haifa, and several other cities. The Times of Israel reported the rally in Tel Aviv alone numbered some 100,000 people.
The rallies included thousands of people demonstrating outside President Isaac Herzog’s residence, while many others gathered outside the home of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Videos and photos circulating on social media show Israeli streets filled with protesters waving flags and beating drums. Some signs carried Netanyahu’s picture with the words “Face of Evil”.
Israelis also took to the streets to protest soaring crime rates in the Arab community, which is the largest ethnic minority in the country. According to the Abraham Initiatives, a Jewish-Arab non-profit, since the start of 2023, 157 Arabs have been killed in Israel compared to 71 during the same period last year.
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Speaking at a rally in Tel Aviv, Mamoun Abd al-Hay, mayor of the city of Tira, blasted the Israeli government for inaction. “Blood is flowing in our streets, and what do the governments of Israel do? Dismantle the police, halt budgets that are supposed to go toward education,” he said, adding that the Arab community has long suffered from discrimination.
The contentious judicial overhaul, meanwhile, was first announced in January and is aimed at limiting the power of the Supreme Court to rule against the legislative and executive branches of government, while granting the governing coalition a majority on the committee that appoints judges. The reform has triggered fierce public backlash, with its opponents arguing that it constitutes an attack on democracy.
Although the legislation has been delayed in the face of nationwide protests, last month Israel’s parliament passed the first part of Netanyahu’s reform package.
