More Mass Protests Rock Israel
After Netanyahu fires minister who urged halt to courts overhaul
HAVANA TIMES – In Israel, hundreds of thousands of people poured into the streets over the weekend as the country’s political crisis reached new heights. On Sunday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu fired Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, one day after Gallant called for a halt to the government’s drastic judicial overhaul, which has triggered months of mass protests and international condemnation.
Gallant said the plan posed a security threat, after the military warned it may have to reduce operations as a growing number of reservists said they would refuse to show up for duty in protest. Israel’s largest trade union is on a general strike today. Histadrut represents over 700,000 workers across various industries, including banks, healthcare and transportation. New York’s Israeli consul general resigned in protest Sunday.
In Tel Aviv, police used water cannons against protesters late Sunday as they blocked a multilane highway. Fires were set in at least two major roads. In Jerusalem, crowds also rallied outside Netanyahu’s private residence.
Hanan Mazeh: “I’m not sure. I’m not sure. But we have no other choice but to fight. And that’s what we’re going to do.”
Meanwhile, Israeli violence toward Palestinians continues. Israeli soldiers stormed Al Aqsa Mosque in East Jerusalem over the weekend, forcibly removing Palestinian worshipers marking the holy month of Ramadan. On Sunday, Palestinian authorities said Israeli settlers burned down a home in a town northeast of Ramallah in the occupied West Bank.