Israel is starting a day of protests throughout the country, after the dawn Parliament approved in the first reading a part of the controversial justice reform wanted by the government of Benjamin Netanyahu. Roadblocks have already begun on the country’s main arteries. Hundreds of demonstrators blocked the Tel Aviv-Jerusalem road, while in Herzliya the police intervened to dismantle tents erected in the center of one of the main intersections, where tires were also burned.
An amendment limiting the powers of intervention on government decisions by the Constitutional Court was passed in the Knesset in first reading. Passed with all 64 votes of the majority, and with the no of the 56 opposition deputies, the measure will have to be put to the vote twice more before being definitively approved. It is the first time that the government has brought articles of the reform back to court, after Netanyahu had suspended the process in March in the face of massive protests that had blocked Israel. In the meantime, an attempt at mediation with the opposition has been launched, under the auspices of President Isaac Herzog, which has not, however, yielded results.
The organizers of the protests, which have continued every Saturday night for 27 weeks, intend to block the country today with demonstrations throughout Israel, the main one expected at 4pm at Ben Gurion airport. Some banks, universities and companies in the hi-tech sector have granted a day off to those who want to participate in the protest, including army reservists. The reform divides the country.
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