Netanyahu flinches, but protests continue – 5 points on the situation in Israel

Despite the announced end of the controversial judicial reform in Israel, opponents of the government plans want to continue their protest. “We will not stop the demonstrations until the judicial coup has completely stopped,” the organizers of the resistance said on the street late Monday evening. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s announcement only serves to mislead the population “to weaken protest and then establish a dictatorship.” Several rallies are scheduled for Tuesday.

What happened?

In the evening, after massive protests and several crisis talks, Prime Minister Netanyahu announced that he would suspend the implementation of the controversial plans for several weeks to “make room for dialogue” and “avoid civil war”. Tens of thousands, sometimes hundreds of thousands, of people have been taking to the streets for about three months against his right-wing religious government’s plan to weaken the independent judiciary.

Has that calmed the protesters?

Not really. The protest continued across the country until Tuesday evening. There were clashes with the police in several cities. In the coastal city of Tel Aviv, protesters temporarily blocked a major highway connecting to Jerusalem. According to media reports, there had been 20 arrests across the country by evening. In some cases, police used stun grenades and water cannons to crack down on demonstrators.

Is the Defense Minister coming back?

The first talks between Netanyahu and the opposition took place in the evening. As various media reported, the head of government first met with former defense minister Benny Gantz. Accordingly, he asked Netanyahu to leave his successor Joav Galant in office. This is “essential to national security” and may help calm the situation. Netanyahu said he fired Galant on Sunday after the defense minister publicly called for the reform to be halted. However, according to media reports, no official letter of resignation has yet been sent to him.

Is the opposition united?

No. There was disagreement in the opposition over whether to open a dialogue with Netanyahu’s government. Opposition leader Jair Lapid was willing to talk in principle. “If the legislation is really and completely stopped, we’re ready to start a real dialogue at the president’s residence,” Lapid said. Nevertheless, he doubted the seriousness of Netanyahu’s offer.

Opposition Labor leader Meirav Michaeli saw little reason for a compromise along the lines of the prime minister. “The struggle and protest must continue and intensify,” she stressed. Netanyahu only wanted to buy time with his statements, but in the end wanted to carry out exactly what so many people in the country feared.

Will the general strike continue?

No. After large parts of economic life came to a standstill on Monday due to a general strike in protest against the reform, a return to normal business was expected on Tuesday. The Israeli Airport Authority announced that normal takeoffs and landings at Ben Gurion Airport would resume. The workers union took part in a nationwide strike on Monday, which led to several flight cancellations. Many workers in other sectors had also quit their jobs after a call from the umbrella organization of trade unions. (sda/dpa)