Ongoing Anti-Government Protests in Israel Escalate to Violence
By Mahya Ghofrani and Gordon Chen
Jerusalem, Israel — March 3rd, 2023 — Protests are intensifying after weeks of anti-government demonstrations in Israel. Chaos began after prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu proposed a new judicial reform that would restrict the power of the Israeli Supreme Court. Critics who oppose this proposal argue that it threatens democracy and rule of law within the country.
According to organizers, an estimated 290,000 people gathered throughout the country on March 1st — a day that citizens proclaim as a “day of disruption” — to express their opposition to these reforms. In the months after the reform was announced, demonstrations have become a regular occurence, and while so far have remained peaceful and civilized, authorities have grown concerned due to the recent increase in violence and rioting. Israeli police fired stun grenades and water cannons in response to protesters in Tel Aviv, an Israeli city. The protesters blocked off highways and became involved in aggressive altercations with authorities, reportedly throwing objects like rocks and waterbottles. One video circulating on social media shows a police officer yelling and pressing his knee into a protester’s neck; another shows a man whose ear was supposedly ripped off as a result of being attacked by a stun grenade.
In the same night of these chaotic demonstrations, large crowds of protesters surrounded and blocked off a salon where Prime Minister Netanyahu’s wife was getting her hair done, as they repeatedly chanted, “The country is burning and she is getting a haircut!” The event, which many are referring to as a “siege,” continued for several hours until Mrs. Netanyahu was eventually rescued by the police.
Netanyahu addressed protesters late that night, saying, “The freedom to demonstrate is not a license to drag the country into anarchy. We will not accept breaking the rules and violence, not in Hawara [a Palestinian village], not in Tel Aviv, and not anywhere.”
The future of these protests are uncertain as tension between the public and the government continues to escalate. Netanyahu and members of the Israeli legislative branch are still expected to proceed with their plans to enforce these judicial reforms.
