TEMPO.CO, Jakarta – Tens of thousands of citizens Israel on Saturday, April 8, 2023, staged a protest against Prime Minister Benjamin’s plan Netanyahu to tighten control on the Supreme Court. The latest series of protests against the plan also come as Israel faces a sharp escalation in tensions on several fronts.
In central Tel Aviv, crowds waved the blue and white Israeli flag that has become a hallmark of the protests over the past three months. They gathered to show defiance of plans seen as an existential threat to Israel’s democracy.
The demonstration started with a prayer for the victims of the attack the day before. Israelis are restless after a car crash in Tel Aviv on Friday, March 7, 2023, which killed an Italian man and injured five other tourists. The incident came hours after a gun attack killed two Israeli sisters and injured their mother near a settlement in the occupied West Bank.
Protesters on Saturday said they would not back down over security concerns. “Security is one thing but reform is another,” said 26-year-old student Amitay Ginsberg. “We will still come here and say loud and clear that we will not let these reforms slide.”
They held up banners reading “Save democracy!”, “Freedom for all!” and “Netanyahu drags us to war”. Other smaller protests took place in the downtown Kfar Saba, in Haifa in the north, and in occupied Jerusalem.
The proposals pushed out by Netanyahu would give the government effective control over the appointment of Supreme Court judges and allow parliament to overturn many court decisions. According to the government, a constitutional overhaul is necessary to restore the proper balance between the judiciary and elected politicians.
Critics believe it would take away some of the essential elements of checks and balances that underpin a democratic state. If the draft is passed, it could potentially hand unchecked powers to the government.
The biggest domestic crisis in Israel’s recent history resulted from this conflict. Hundreds of thousands of demonstrators, including army reservists, business leaders, members of Israel’s technology industry and top academics have taken part, facing off against supporters of Netanyahu’s religious-nationalist coalition.
Before the protest, police had urged people to clear the street so emergency services could move freely after Friday’s car crash on Tel Aviv’s popular shoreline promenade.
Netanyahu’s own initiative was suspended last month due to a wave of strikes and mass demonstrations. But Netanyahu has mobilized a reserve border police force and ordered the army to strengthen security positions to prevent any potential trouble. The United Nations, the European Union and the United States called for calm in Tel Aviv.
The demonstration took place amid heightened security concerns following the attack by Israeli forces on the Al Aqsa Mosque. Around Masjid Al-Aqsa In Jerusalem, tens of thousands of worshipers are expected to stay up for evening prayers amid fears of a repeat of the night police raids, which were followed by rocket fire and Israeli attacks on Gaza and South Lebanon.
REUTERS | TRT
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