Following the clashes that ensued, Israeli President Isaac Herzog called “to immediately halt the legislative process.”
On Monday, a crowd — some 100,000 demonstrators, according to the local press — once again took to the streets in Jerusalem to protest against the reform. In the evening, a counter-demonstration, with thousands of participants according to an AFP journalist, took place not far from the first one.
There were also mobilizations against the reform in Tel Aviv and Haifa (north).
“We are asking the government to stop this crazy reform,” Keren Mimran, a 57-year-old protester who works in the high-tech sector, told AFP.
“The government has brought Israel to the brink of destruction and they are still threatening to dismantle democracy. A temporary freeze is not enough and the national protests will continue to intensify until the law is completely rejected in the Knesset,” declared the Umbrella Movement Against Dictatorship, which brings together various civil groups.
In addition, workers at Ben Gurion International Airport managed to suspend flight take-offs for several hours, and traffic at the port of Ashod has also been slowed down; while the protesters returned to the streets.
This Monday, the parliamentary commission of laws voted in favor of one of the key elements of the reform: the bill that modifies the process for appointing judges.
The reform promoted by the Netanyahu government, one of the most right-wing in the history of Israel, seeks to increase the power of politicians over judges and diminish the role of the Supreme Court.
With information from AFP and EFE