Massive crowds filled the streets of the Israeli city of Tel Aviv late Sunday night after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu fired his defense minister over his opposition to a planned judicial overhaul. Waving Israeli flags and chanting “democratia,” protestors could be seen blocking streets and bridges, including the Ayalon Highway.
According to CNN, Protesters lit several fires on the main highway in Tel Aviv, their acrid, black smoke billowing into the sky, partly obscuring some of the city’s iconic skyscrapers. Demonstrators also gathered beside the highway, burning scrap metal and wood with almost no police around.
Israel’s political crisis deepened on Sunday when Netanyahu’s office announced the removal of Yoav Gallant in a one-line statement, after he became the first member of the cabinet to call for a pause to controversial plans to overhaul the country’s court system. “Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has decided to remove Defense Minister Yoav Gallant from his post,” the statement read.
Gallant argued for a halt to the judicial reforms in a speech Saturday night, when Netanyahu was out of the country on an official visit to the United Kingdom. Some military reservists have pledged to pull out of their service in opposition to the plans, which critics say would undermine the independence of the judiciary. Gallant said pressing ahead with the proposals could threaten Israel’s security.
As protesters gathered into the early hours of Monday, three Israeli government ministers – all members of Netanyahu’s Likud party – suggested that Netanyahu should stop the judicial overhaul legislation.
“When the house is on fire, you don’t ask who is right, but pour water and save its occupants,” Culture and Sports Minister Miki Zohar tweeted. “If the Prime Minister decides to stop the legislation in order to prevent the rift created in the nation, we must support his position.”
And Economy Minister Nir Barkat, a former mayor of Jerusalem, suggested Netanyahu should “stop and recalculate” his overhaul plan, warning it has brought the country to the brink of civil war. “The reform is necessary and we will do it – but not at the cost of a civil war,” he said.
