Right-wing demonstrators from Israel carried out assault on Palestinians in Jerusalem.
Israeli police, cited by local media, have arrested three individuals in connection with an ongoing investigation following assaults by far-right groups on Palestinian citizens of Israel who were passing by pro-government protests in Jerusalem. On Monday evening, during a day of nationwide protests against proposed changes to Israel’s judiciary, one man was reportedly subjected to a brutal beating. Hundreds of thousands of people participated in the protests that started on Sunday and continued through Monday, including a general strike. In addition to the protests, pro-government demonstrators held rallies in different parts of the country before Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that the move was being postponed.
The most significant demonstrations from both groups occurred in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, raising concerns about potential clashes between them. In a brief video clip, a Palestinian individual seemed to have become involved in a right-wing protest before being rescued by security personnel. Additionally, another clip depicted protesters carrying Israeli and Likud flags obstructing a Palestinian driver and chanting slogans. The far-right National Security Minister, Itamar Ben Gvir, supported the protesters who rallied in favor of the judicial amendments.
He wrote on Twitter: “Today the right stopped sitting on the sidelines and being silent. The right is usually indifferent to demonstrations and active at the polls. But when they want to cancel our vote, when they try to steal the election results from us, when they tell us that our vote is second class – this is the result.”
He also shared a photo from the pro-government demonstrations.
The plans by the governing nationalist religious coalition to hand control over judicial appointments to the executive while giving parliament the power to overturn Supreme Court rulings has ignited one of the biggest internal crises in Israeli history and led to massive protests against the move in the past few months.
The decision to suspend the overhaul followed an extraordinary weekend in which Defense Minister Yoav Gallant was sacked after warning the divisions caused by the plans had affected the military and were threatening national security.
His dismissal by Netanyahu stirred mass protests once again as Israel’s President Isaac Herzog urged a halt to push the amendments through.