Israeli media also gave higher figures (some 150,000 protesters), on the eve of the introduction of a major reform provision in the Knesset on Monday. The police do not usually give an estimate of the number of protesters.
Security forces used water cannons to disperse about a hundred protesters who were blocking a highway in Tel Aviv, according to an AFP journalist.
“If we don’t stop what’s happening now, it won’t be possible to go back,” said Amit Lev, a 40-year-old tech worker.
What is judicial reform in Israel about?
Netanyahu’s government, formed in December with the support of far-right parties and ultra-Orthodox Jewish formations, is trying to pass a judicial reform that seeks to increase the power of Parliament over that of the Supreme Court.
The Executive considers that the reform is necessary to ensure a better balance of powers. But his detractors, on the other hand, believe that the new regulations could push the country towards an authoritarian model.
After announcing a “pause” in the processing of the reform at the end of March, the government is relaunching its offensive this Monday in Parliament.
The chamber will examine in first reading a bill that seeks to annul the possibility for the judiciary to rule on the “reasonableness” of government decisions.
This provision affects, among others, the appointment of ministers. In January, he forced Netanyahu to remove the number two in the government, Aryeh Deri, convicted of tax fraud, after the intervention of the Supreme Court.