Hundreds of thousands of Israelis demonstrated for the ninth week in a row tonight in Tel Aviv and in at least 20 other locations against judicial overhaul plans by Benjamin Netanyahu’s far-right government that critics say will undermine the judiciary.

In Tel Aviv, tens of thousands participated in the central demonstration at Kaplan Street. The demonstrators waved banners, some of which read, “Oh police, where were when they [settlers] burned Huwara?,” in reference to the terrorist pogrom carried out by Israeli settlers last week in the town of Huwara, south of Nablus.

Demonstrators also held a banner bearing the images of the hard-right Israeli Minister of National Security Itamar Ben Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, and behind it a picture of the town of Huwara burning at the hands of settlers. The banner had Hebrew writing that read, “Yesterday in Huwara…tomorrow in Israel,” indicating that Netanyahu’s far-right government, which includes ministers like Ben Gvir and Smotrich, will burn Israel with its policies toward the Palestinians.

In Haifa, the number of demonstrators was significantly higher than previous weeks, with nearly 35,000 demonstrators demanding Netanyahu to step down. They also waved banners with slogans written in Hebrew, English and Arabic, including: “Palestinian lives matter”, “A people occupying another people cannot be free,” “It is time to overthrow the dictator,” “The government of shame,” and “Apartheid does not stop at the Green Line.”

In addition, about 12,000 people demonstrated in Netanya, while more than 10,000 demonstrated in Herzliya, 3,000 in Beersheba, and thousands in several areas, including Modi’in, Rishon Letzion, Yavne, and Ra’anana.

Netanyahu’s judicial overhaul plans have drawn fierce opposition from leftist groups, raising concerns among business leaders, widening already deep political divisions in Israeli society.

Netanyahu has downplayed the protests as a refusal by leftist opponents to accept the results of the last election, which produced one of the most right-wing governments in Israel’s history.

SOURCE: PALESTINE NEWS & INFO AGENCY