Israelis stage giant protest against Netanyahu court reform
An estimated 110,000 people have packed the streets of Tel Aviv, in one of Israel’s biggest anti-government protests in the past decade.
The rallies spread across the city centre as banners were hoisted calling for an end to the ruling coalition, which is the most right-wing and religious-nationalist in Israel’s history.
“This is a dangerous government,” said Yaara Ben Geraluf, a teacher from Jaffa, a western suburb on the coast.
“This government will not be any good for women, for LGBTQ, for the impoverished people… and of course for Palestinians,” she told the BBC.
Organisers say they are trying to stop a “coup” taking place against the system of government.
It is the second week running that mass protests have taken place in four different cities.
Opposition leader, Yair Lapid, addressed the crowds in Tel Aviv, saying “people who love the country” came to defend its democracy and its courts.
“We won’t give up until we win,” he said.
It comes three weeks after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu returned to power to form Israel’s first stable coalition in three years. He said Israelis voted for a “full” right-wing government and for security.
His coalition contains far-right parties, including one whose leader was once convicted of anti-Arab racism, and another who is openly homophobic and misogynistic.
Protesters accuse Mr Netanyahu of threatening democratic rule, amid an unprecedented clash between the new government and Israel’s judges
