Netanyahu’s streets burn with rage
ISRAEL - Israeli police violently clashed with protesters across the country on Sunday, as tens of thousands took to streets across the nation to oppose Benjamin Netanyahu’s leadership during the Israel-Hamas war.
Protesters from all parts of Israeli society flooded streets to share their rage at the Israeli prime minister and his handling of the war in Gaza that has so far left nearly 33 000 people, most of whom are civilians, dead. And police took extreme measures to get them under control, with photographers capturing brutal moments where cops dragged demonstrators across tarmac and beat them into submission.
Protests were held in cities including Tel Aviv, Jerusalem and Haifa, not only calling for the release of the estimated 130 people still held captive since October 7, but also for Netanyahu to be removed from power, following months of dissatisfaction.
Blame
Protesters blame Netanyahu for the failures of October 7 and say the deep political divisions over his attempted judicial overhaul last year weakened
Israel ahead of the attack.
Netanyahu is facing a litany of corruption charges which are slowly making their way through the courts, and critics say his decisions with regard to the bloody war in Gaza appear to be focused on political survival over the national interest. Many family members of hostages, and even hostages themselves, have called on him to resign and allow national elections to take place, having previously refrained from publicly denouncing Netanyahu to avoid antagonising the leadership and making the hostages’ plight a political issue.