Tens of Thousands Attend Pro-Reform Protest in Yerushalayim

By Matis Glenn

Tens of thousands of demonstrators flooded the streets of Yerushalayim Monday evening, in support of judicial reform, after Finance Minister Betzalel Smotrich called for a protest in front of the Knesset.

Meanwhile, opponents of the reform, incensed over the firing of Gallant, almost breached security forces outside Netanyahu’s personal residence on Sunday, and continued demonstrations in Yerushalayim and Tel-Aviv on Monday. The Ayalon highway in Tel-Aviv remained closed to traffic on the north-bound side, but the south-bound side was opened.

Israeli universities announced Sunday that they would be suspending classes indefinitely; Ben Gurion airport was on strike as well. In a representation of how divided the country is over the issue, many local municipalities announced that they were going on strike after being urged by the Histadrut labor union to do so.

The Israeli Consulate in New York has also closed down operations on Monday, but a spokesperson for the office told Hamodia that they will accommodate emergency requests.

National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir at the demonstration of reform supporters:

Communications Minister Shlomo Karai said about the protest: “Netanyahu is watching this huge demonstration and is receiving tremendous reinforcement. The reform will pass – even if there is a delay, we will return the justice system to [real] justice.”

Netanyahu’s office announced that he would address the country at 8 p.m.