Israeli protesters demand resignation of PM

By Linda Bordoni

Central Tel Aviv was filled with antigovernment protesters on Saturday in the largest show of anger toward Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in months.

In the immediate aftermath of the Hamas-led attacks on October 7, in which some 1,200 Israelis were killed and 153 were abducted, ongoing large-scale rallies in response to the government’s push for a wide-ranging judicial reform were put on pause.

But as the war has passed the four-month mark, demonstrations against Netanyahu’s government have been strengthening with protesters calling for new polls which are not scheduled until 2026.

They are demanding the PM and his right-wing coalition to step down, adding that even before the war they had lost confidence the government had the nation’s best interest at heart.

The protests against Netanyahu and the government are separate from the increasingly divisive public debate over the Israeli course of action in Gaza regarding the hostages captured by Hamas and other groups on Oct. 7. According to Israeli security services more than 130 hostages remain in the enclave, including at least 30 who are believed to be dead. 

In response to the attack the Israeli military launched unprecedented air and ground strikes on the Gaza Strip killing nearly 29,000 Palestinians so far and displacing more than 1.4 million people in a campaign many governments have termed a genocide.

The protesters also said they were furious over Netanyahu declining to send a representative to Egypt’s capital Cairo for talks over ending the Gaza conflict.

The United States, Qatar and Egypt have spent weeks trying to broker a ceasefire and captive release, but the talks have been hit by a wide gap between Israel’s and Hamas’s demands. Qatar on Saturday said the talks "have not been progressing as expected".