New York, US

Massive protests erupted in Israel and New York city over the weekend against the judicial overhaul planned by the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The protests intensified as the PM wrapped up his trip to the US to attend the annual UN gathering, where he set the stage for a “new Middle East”.

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Demonstrators in Israel gathered on Saturday (Sept 23) for the 38th consecutive week to voice their anger against Netanyahu’s ‘assault on democracy.’ Around 2,000 protesters also gathered in New York against what they say Netanyahu’s ‘campaign of deceit.’

A major protest group Kaplan Force said, “We will not allow Netanyahu to turn Israel into a dangerous messianic dictatorship, taking us to a constitutional crisis.”

“The protests will be amplified over the coming weeks until the Knesset’s return from holidays,” it added.

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Pro-Netanyahu protests also take place

Times of Israel in one of its reports said that some conservative groups also appeared in New York to show their support for the Netanyahu administration.

They chanted “64 mandates,” referring to the coalition’s majority in the 120-seat Knesset, and “their money will not help you.”

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Also read: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu under fire for holding up map erasing Palestine during UN speech

Netanyahu and his supporters believe the protests against the government are fueled by overseas funding but have failed to provide any evidence. 

“We very much support democracy and the Israelis elected democratically Bibi Netanyahu, so sorry that these people are upset that they lost but a democracy is a democracy,” Netanyahu supporter Hillary Barr was quoted as saying by Times of Israel.

Biden-Netanyahu tensions

During the trip to the US, Netanyahu on Wednesday also had a meeting with US President Joe Biden where the US leader raised “hard issues,” including protecting the “checks and balances” in a democracy.

Watch: Netanyahu: Israel 'on the cusp' of historic agreement with Saudi Arabia

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Biden also raised concerns about the far-right Israeli government’s treatment of the Palestinians, urging Netanyahu to take steps to improve conditions in the West Bank.

Israelis don’t support protests in US, says poll

Meanwhile, a recent poll has suggested that most Israelis don’t support holding protests against their country on foreign soil.

The poll conducted by Lazar Research Laboratories for the Maariv newspaper revealed at least 53 per cent of respondents expressed opposition to the protests in the US, while just 36 per cent of them supported them.

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