That turned into a mess
What happened tonight at the Tel Aviv demonstrations
- Two rallies merged; the ‘Bring Them Home’ campaign joined the antigovernment protesters in central Tel Aviv.
- A vehicle rammed into at least five people, seriously injuring one. The driver was later arrested.
- The Israeli police reported that a protester had hit a female police officer in the face. A video, later published on various Israeli media channels, appeared to show that the protesters accidentally elbowed her as he was pulled back.
- Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported that at least six protesters were arrested in total, and the police used a sound canon to disperse protesters.
People protest against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government in Tel Aviv, Israel, Saturday, April 6
Israeli officials criticise demonstrations
The streets of Tel Aviv and other Israeli cities are packed this evening with protesters calling for the release of captives held in Gaza and elections to replace the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
On X, Israeli communications minister and member of Netanyahu’s Likud party, Shlomo Karhi, says that the “deterioration” of the protests into violence is “led by the leaders of the left, inside and outside the coalition”, and “does not help anyone and tears us apart in the midst of a war. This is in stark contrast to the spirit of our warriors”.
Earlier, clashes were reported between protesters and police, and a car-ramming incident amidst the demonstrations left at least five injured, one seriously.
Also chiming in was Israeli transport minister Miri Regev, another Likud party member, who condemned the protesters as lawless, saying that there are those among them who want to assassinate Netanyahu.
'In stark contrast to the spirit of our warriors' that fire on people waiting for aid and cause stampedes...
Former Shin Bet chief: ‘Military campaign in Gaza has reached its limit’
Israeli newspaper Haaretz reports that the former Shin Bet chief Ami Ayalon has stated that “the military campaign in Gaza has reached its limit” during a demonstration in Haifa in northern Israel.
Israel’s Shin Bet, or Shabak as it is known in both Hebrew and Arabic, is the internal intelligence service and one of the three branches of the Israeli General Security Service.
“Our soldiers are forced to re-occupy places that were occupied a few weeks ago, and become police forces for a population full of rage and hatred. They are forced to kill hungry civilians who attack them when they are protecting humanitarian aid convoys,” Ayalon said.
He called for Hamas to be defeated “with a combination of a political process that will lead to a moderate regional coalition under American and Saudi leadership”. He is quoted as saying such a coalition would require “a process leading to a historic compromise with the Palestinian people”.
Haaretz stated that Ayalon called Netanyahu’s decision not to discuss “the day after” the war a disaster, adding, “Without a political goal, the war becomes a continuous battle that no one knows the end of.”
US and Iran are avoiding confrontation, but Netanyahu is raising the temperature
Sultan Barakat, professor in public policy at Qatar Foundation’s Hamad Bin Khalifa University, spoke to Al Jazeera about the letter sent by dozens of congressional Democrats urging Biden to halt weapon transfers to Israel.
Here are some of the key points he made:
- If you look at the names that have signed a letter, there are some who are genuinely calling for a ceasefire, and there are some who are being opportunistic.
- The details of the weapons they’re asking Biden to hold back on are very interesting, as they include the 20 F-35 fighter jets, which are not used for the war on Gaza, which indicates that Netanyahu is aiming to engage the Americans with Iran.
- The call for a ceasefire is not as novel as it used to be a few weeks ago, particularly after the United Nations Security Council resolution.
- Netanyahu has made a big mistake in not compromising just before Ramadan and using that moral high ground.
- The US is doing their best also to avoid direct confrontation with Iran, particularly in an election year.
- Both sides are desperately avoiding confrontation. But there will be a time when a mistake is made, and I think Netanyahu is banking on this. He’s going to continue raising the temperature more and more.
Netanyahu is doing everything to keep the war going and to expand the conflict. It's the only way he can stay in power. Any cessation of hostilities means he'll be back to facing prosecution from his earlier crimes. And it's clear he'll be forced to leave as soon as the war is over.
How much more damage will the US let Netanyahu cause before turning off the bomb deliveries.
