Tens of thousands of Israelis poured onto the streets of cities across the country in a spontaneous outburst of anger after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu abruptly fired his defense minister for challenging the Israeli leader’s judicial change plan.
Protesters in Tel Aviv blocked a main road and lit large bonfires as police clashed with protesters who gathered outside Netanyahu’s private home in Jerusalem on Sunday night.
The unrest deepened a months-long crisis over Netanyahu’s plan to change the powers of the judiciary, which has sparked mass protests, alarmed business leaders and former security chiefs, and raised concerns among the United States and other close allies.
Netanyahu’s resignation of Defense Minister Yoav Gallant signaled that the prime minister was unwilling to listen to his own party members. Gallant was the first senior member of the ruling Likud party to speak out against the plan, saying the deep divisions threatened to weaken the military.
As crowds of protesters flooded the streets well into the night, Likud ministers seemed more willing to slam on the brakes. Culture Minister Micky Zohar, a close confidant of Netanyahu, said the party would support him if he decided to suspend the legislation.
Netanyahu on Monday delayed a public statement expecting him to halt the legislation after a coalition ally urged him not to back down, Channel 12 TV reported.
The head of Israel’s largest trade union group said it would launch a general strike. The decision by the Histadrut — which represents more than 700,000 workers in a variety of industries from banking to transportation to health workers — could paralyze large parts of Israel’s economy.
Arnon Bar-David, the group’s head, said he made the decision to lead Israel away from “an abyss.”
(TagsToTranslate)Gallery
