JERUSALEM (AP) – After a night of intense protests against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his government, dozens of Israeli protesters chained themselves and briefly blocked the entrance to parliament on Wednesday morning.
Police arrested four and interrupted the meeting, which was called to protest in an upcoming vote to give the government the authority to prevent parliament from taking steps to combat the rapid spread of the coronavirus. But it came amid a new wave of discontent with Netanyahu.
Protests outside Netanyahu’s residence have become a weekly occurrence, with police taking increasingly severe measures against protesters. Last month, they arrested a retired Israeli air force general, triggering an uproar.
Since then, the protests have attracted a younger crowd and have become more challenging. Last week, thousands of Israelis have participated in some of the largest demonstrations in almost a decade against the prime minister for a long time, as public discontent spread. Netanyahu has come under increasing criticism for taking office while on trial for corruption, pressing for apparently undemocratic measures under the guise of fighting the virus and mismanaging the country’s deep economic crisis.
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On Tuesday night, a large coalition of protest groups rallied to march through the streets of Jerusalem from Netanyahu’s official residence to the Knesset, Israel’s parliament. They played drums, beat pots, and blew trumpets as they called for the Prime Minister’s resignation and held placards saying, “Israeli spring is here.”
Towards the end, a young woman climbed onto a mounted candlestick, the national symbol, and removed her shirt in protest. Police said they arrested 34 people who were involved in the riots, putting a heavy hand on the arrests.
The meeting also attracted celebrity restaurant owners and chefs, frustrated by inconsistent government reopening policies for businesses. Chefs handed out meals while self-employed Israelis without jobs joined the ranks with the anti-Netanyahu protest movement.
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Netanyahu has seen his popularity drop in recent weeks as his corruption trial began and his bloated “emergency” coalition government, formed specifically to handle the crisis, had managed the management of the pandemic.
Netanyahu is being tried in a series of cases in which he allegedly received gifts from billionaire friends and exchanged regulatory favors with media tycoons for more favorable coverage of him and his family. The prime minister has denied wrongdoing, accusing the media and law enforcement of a witch hunt to expel him from office, and has refused to resign.
Israel was praised for its early handling of the coronavirus crisis and the imposition of strict movement restrictions. But since the reopening of the economy in May, new cases have skyrocketed and unemployment remains above 20%, up from 3.9% before the pandemic.
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Critics of the Netanyahu government’s response to the economic crisis say it has provided little assistance to Israelis and has failed to provide a safety net for hundreds of thousands of freelancers and business owners. The government has also been accused of issuing contradictory guidelines that have only further fueled the anger of ordinary citizens.
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A financial aid plan announced by Netanyahu last week, which would see hundreds of dollars delivered to all Israeli households, was widely condemned by economists and has hit a snag in parliament.
Associated Press writer Ilan Ben-Zion in Jerusalem contributed to this report.
