Critics say the changes will destroy the country’s system of checks and balances and put power in the hands of the prime minister and his cronies.
“We are protesting because if not, it is like surrender and we will never agree to the elimination of democracy in this country,” said Einat Gival-Levi, an activist. “It’s really important that we raise awareness around the world.”
Hundreds of Israeli women’s rights activists dressed as characters from the television series, “The Handmaid’s Tale,” marched to downtown Tel Aviv to join the main protest.
The uproar over the legal reform plans by Benjamin Netanyahu’s government has plunged Israel into one of its worst domestic crises. Beyond the protests, which have drawn tens of thousands of Israelis to the streets and recently turned violent, opposition has risen from across society, with business leaders and legal officials ‘ speak out against what they say will be the damaging effects of the plan.
On Thursday, Netanyahu had to be transported to the country’s main international airport for a trip abroad after a crowd of cars and protesters prevented him from driving there.
The split has not spared the Israeli military, which is seeing an unprecedented challenge from its own fronts.
Critics also say that Netanyahu, who is on trial for corruption, is driven by personal grievances and could find an escape route from the charges during the review. Netanyahu denies wrongdoing and says the legal changes have nothing to do with his trial.
The protests have largely been dominated by the country’s secular middle class. Israel’s Palestinian minority, who make up about 20% of the population, have been largely absent, partly because they suffer discrimination in Israel and because of how Israel treated their Palestinian brothers in the West Bank and Gaza.
