Police using water cannons to disperse a protest outside the PM’s residence in Jerusalem Israel

Thousands protest nationwide against Netanyahu as demonstrations ratchet up At least 5,000 mass near PM’s residence in Jerusalem, as more rally in Tel Aviv, Caesarea and at highway overpasses and major junctions; demonstrators attacked in south, Ramat Gan Thousands of demonstrators took to the streets across Israel on Saturday evening, in protests largely directed to demanding Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu resign over his indictment on graft charges and castigating his government’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic. In Jerusalem, demonstrators filled Paris Square and the street outside the Prime Minister’s Residence, where there have been growing protests in recent weeks. A police spokesman said around 5,000 people were at the protest which began at around 8 p.m. and continued long past its official 11 p.m. ending. The demonstrations also took place in Tel Aviv, Caesarea and at major junctions, highway overpasses and other spots across the country, in what appeared to be the largest yet demonstration of a growing protest movement seeking Netanyahu’s ouster and redress of a laundry list of other ills wracking the country. In Jerusalem’s Paris Square, which has been the locus of the protest movement, police allowed protesters to remain until around 1 a.m. but then began clearing them out, dragging activists off the street one by one and eventually deploying two water cannons against the remaining group that refused to leave. Police said 55 people had been detained or arrested for “various offenses included disturbing public order or attacking other protesters.” The number seemingly included a pro-Netanyahu group reportedly detained for beating up activists leaving the Jerusalem rally. The police, who have been criticized for what some say are heavy handed tactics deployed against protesters during previous rallies, waited until later in the night than normal to use force to clear out the area. This came after police sources told Channel 12 news that they had no intention of using more forceful tactics against demonstrators, despite the reported pressure of Public Security Minister Amir Ohana. An anti-corruption protest was also held for the first time near Netanyahu’s private home in the northern coastal town of Caesarea, where hundreds of people were gathered. Additionally, hundreds of people demonstrated in Tel Aviv’s Charles Clore Park against the government’s policies to address the economic fallout caused by the COVID-19 outbreak. Israelis at a protest in Tel Aviv on July 25, 2020. (Miriam Alster/Flash90) In Jerusalem, with the square and street filled, protesters spilled into the surrounding streets as more continued to join the crowd, which was far more tightly packed and took up far more space than at any previous protest. “They stole from the poor to give to the rich, what a corrupt government!” protesters chanted, as the crowd’s noise rose to a deafening roar. Demonstrators carried signs reading “Bibi, Let my people go” and “Enough with the detached government!” Others waved Israeli flags or beat drums and blew horns. Gidi Carmon, 23, came from the central city of Modiin to attend the anti-Netanyahu protests in Jerusalem for the first time. A student at Ben-Gurion University in Beersheba, he lost a part-time job at the beginning of the pandemic which he used to make ends meet. Israelis protest against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu outside his official residence in Jerusalem on July 25, 2020. (Aaron Boxerman/Times of Israel) “The people at the top are dealing with crazy things instead of the economy and with people’s health, like tax breaks for Netanyahu. It’s time for him to resign,” Carmon, who identified himself as center-left, told The Times of Israel. “Take annexation — it’s not even about right or wrong, it’s about timing. How did they spend so much time on that in the middle of this crisis?” Carmon asked rhetorically, referring to Israel’s declared intent to annex parts of the West Bank. “We have a prime minister who’s interested in advancing his personal affairs and can’t lead the country,” she said. “If Bibi [Netanyahu] doesn’t go, one day we won’t be a democracy.” Israelis protest against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu outside his official residence in Jerusalem on July 25, 2020. (Olivier Fitoussi/Flash90) Several clusters of demonstrators rallied together. Members of the HaShomer HaTzair youth movement, wearing their distinctive blue shirts with red laces, held signs and chanted against the Prime Minister. Many protesters wore the “no way” and “crime minister” t-shirts that have become associated with the so-called Black Flag movement against the Prime Minister. Close to Ramban Street, some young activists from the far-left Hadash party wave the red flags associated with the Communist youth movement Maki. On nearby Agron Street, Roli and Shoshi, two Jerusalem residents, hold signs saying “united against the detached government.”