150 gather in J’lem to support PM
Some 150 protesters gathered in front of the Prime Minister’s Residence in the capital Saturday night to express their support for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, four days after the Israel Police said it found evidence to incriminate him on two bribery charges.
Attendees of the demonstration were holding signs reading “the people are with Netanyahu,” and were flying Likud and Israel flags.
Protesters were also chanting against the police, calling it “a police of leftists.” In the heavy rain, some were chanting: “In the hot times and in the cold times, we will stand with Bibi.”
MK Amir Ohana, who attended the rally, told The Jerusalem Post that its goals were to show support for the prime minister and to the demand that the police be more transparent in its actions.
“Whoever wants a strong police should also demand a transparent police, and an option to criticize it,” he said. “A body that no one can criticize is not strong.
“When the police commissioner took office he promised to fight the leaks and to stop the habit of police recommendations. Since then, we haven’t seen leaks, but a flood of information coming from the investigations rooms.”
Ohana added that in his opinion, the police announcement last week was wrong, and some of the charges in it were false charges.
“I am saying it as a lawyer – I believe that some charges will not be translated into an indictment,” he said.
When asked to comment about chants made in protests, saying that The Police have a clear political orientation in which it acted in Netanyahu’s investigation, Ohana said: “Let’s put it this way – I think that there is a place to worry about that.”
Across the road from the Likud demonstration, dozens gathered for an “anti-Netanyahu” protest. Demonstrators held signs reading “Go home, corrupted people.”
Protesters were also chanting “Netanyahu is dangerous - [he is both] corrupt and racist.”