Ahead of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s official visit to Italy on the 9th and US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin’s visit to Israel, Israeli protesters intensified opposition to the government’s push for judicial reform, announcing plans to block roads to Ben-Gurion Airport on the same day. .
Protesters who have been demonstrating against judicial reform for over two months declared the 9th as the ‘Day of Resistance Against Dictatorship’ and started a new demonstration. Parents and children took part in protests across Israel, and fleets of paddleboards and kayaks started to block major shipping in the northern city of Haifa. Protesters barricaded the offices of conservative think tanks that support judicial reform.
The turmoil surrounding Prime Minister Netanyahu’s judicial reforms has plunged Israel into one of its worst domestic crises. In addition to violent protests in the streets, opposition is growing across society, with business leaders and legal officials threatening judicial reforms with devastating effects. The Israeli military also joined the voice of opposition unprecedentedly.
Netanyahu and his allies, who took office last December after a long political stalemate, say judicial reform is meant to rein in an abusive court, but critics say it will overturn the system of checks and balances and drive Israel toward authoritarianism.
They also accuse Prime Minister Netanyahu, who is on trial for corruption, being obsessed with personal grievances and trying to find a way out of the charges through judicial reform.
“Israel is on the verge of becoming a dictatorship,” said Sabion Orr, a protester in Tel Aviv. The current government is destroying our democracy, and actually destroying the country,” he said.
Protesters plan to block the highway to the airport ahead of Prime Minister Netanyahu’s state visit to Italy, making it difficult for the Prime Minister to schedule overseas visits and forcing him to change his travel plans to the airport, Israeli media reported. . Netanyahu is expected to travel to Ben Gurion Airport by helicopter rather than by car.
Meanwhile, US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin’s visit to Israel on the 8th is also affected by the protests. An Israeli official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the meeting between Austin and an Israeli official was moved from the originally scheduled location near the Ministry of Defense in Tel Aviv to a location near the airport.
[텔아비브(이스라엘)=AP/뉴시스]
Source: Donga
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.