Posted on 03/09/23
| News Source: i24
Israeli naval reservists launched a flotilla to disrupt operations at Haifa port
The protest movement against the government's judicial reform plan is waging a “day of resistance against the dictatorship” on Thursday, blocking roads and even maritime routes.
Protesters managed to block one of the countries' main highways, Ayalon, which connects all of the major traffic routes leading to Tel Aviv. Earlier large crowds of demonstrators flocked to Israel’s main Ben Gurion airport, not far from Tel Aviv, in order to complicate the arrival of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who will fly for an official visit to Italy with his wife.
However, the prime minister and his wife arrived at the airport by helicopter in order to avoid traffic jams. The Ayalon highway was cleared without major incidents, as protesters marched elsewhere in Tel Aviv.
Israel's National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, who also came to the airport, criticized the protesters for blocking the roads and preventing people from getting to hospitals or flying on vacations.
"I am the last person to speak out against protests. You are allowed to demonstrate, I demonstrated for decades, protest, shout, this is democracy. Anarchy must not be allowed, this is my directive to the police, it is currently being implemented here and I hope it will continue," he said.
Hundreds of Israeli reservists also gathered outside the Kohelet Forum buildings in Jerusalem, a right-wing think tank supporting the government's judicial reforms. Members of the 'Brothers in Arms' protest blocked the entrance to the buildings which led to the arrest of five reservists.