Tens of thousands of people demonstrated in Jerusalem on Sunday to denounce the Netanyahu government and the exemptions granted to religiously observant Jews from military service, in a scene reminiscent of the massive street protests last year.
Israeli media said that thousands of demonstrators were leaving the Knesset area and heading towards Netanyahu's house.
Protest groups organized the demonstration in front of the Knesset, calling for new elections to replace the current government. Some of these groups led the massive demonstrations that rocked Israel last year.
The protesters also want greater equality in bearing the burden of mandatory military service for most Israelis. About 600 soldiers were killed since the October 7 attack and the Gaza war that followed, the highest death toll among the army in decades.
Channel 12 News said it appeared to be the largest demonstration since the start of the war. Haaretz newspaper and the Ynet news site reported that tens of thousands of people participated.
Netanyahu's government faces widespread criticism over its security failure regarding the Hamas attack on southern Israel, in which 1,200 people were killed and more than 250 hostages were kidnapped to Gaza.
“This government has failed completely and miserably. It will lead us into the abyss,” Nurit Robinson, 74, said at the demonstration.
The Israeli war in the Palestinian Strip has exacerbated a source of tension that has been simmering for a long time in society and is also destabilizing Netanyahu’s ruling coalition, which is the exemptions granted to ultra-Orthodox Jewish religious institute students from serving in the army.
In the midst of the growing protests, Netanyahu, following a press conference held at the government headquarters, went to the hospital to undergo surgery to treat a hernia, less than a year after he had a pacemaker installed.
“During a routine examination of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Saturday night, a hernia was discovered,” Netanyahu’s office said in a statement, adding that he will undergo general anesthesia during the surgery that will be performed on him later on Sunday.
The statement stated that Justice Minister Yariv Levin will replace Netanyahu during the period in which he will be suspended due to the operation.
Last July, Netanyahu underwent a pacemaker implantation operation, at a time when Israel was suffering from its worst internal crisis in decades due to large protests against the plan to amend the judicial system proposed by the far-right government.
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