Their opposition to the changes and reforms planned by the Netanyahu government, which are likely to “shake the foundations of the country“, express Israeli protesters with whom “K” spoke in the midst of mass gatherings that have been taking place in almost all cities of the country for about ten weeks now.

The protest rallies have been called the largest in Israeli history, with analysts noting that they also involve groups of citizens who are not accustomed to taking part in anti-government initiatives.

Over the weekend, 180,000 citizens gathered in Tel Aviv alone, while the number of protesters across the country reached 500,000 people.

The position of the historian and intellectual testifies to the prevailing climate. Yuval Noah Harari in a recent article in Haaretz. “What is happening in Israel is not judicial reform, but a coup,” he says, adding that it is “the duty of citizens” to stop the government.

75 year old Moshe Talmor he joins the protests because he says he fears for his children and grandchildren. “I may not live long, but I don’t want my descendants to live in a country that has lost its democracy.“, – he emphasizes “K”.

He expresses fear that Israel will suffer the fate of Hungary, Poland or Brazil Bolsonaro. “Subsequent illiberal regimes emerged as a result of elections,” he adds. “At the moment, of course, our daily life has not changed so dramatically, but if you look at it currency retreat, deposit withdrawal companies and their investments young people leave the countryyou’ll know something’s wrong.”

And it’s not just the ongoing reform of the judiciary that upsets the citizens of Israel. “After more than 70 years, Clearly the system needs to be changed. throughout the entire system of the country. But changes are not made secretly and by dark decisions. Need advice government needs to talk to social partnersMoshe Talmor says.

In addition to judicial reform, one of the concerns of our interlocutor is changes in education. “Minister of Education [σ.σ. ο Γιν Κις, που είναι και υπουργός Θρησκευτικού Διαλόγου] contributes to changes in the education system, deeply conservative. He wants to introduce extreme religious teachings, he is against homosexuals, he wants to push education towards deep conservation, ”says Moshe Talmor.

Our interlocutor characterizes Israel as a democracy that has “always been fragile”, but expresses hope “that the government would back down rather than change the laws.”

OUR Tal Bashan also protesting in Tel Aviv “for the future of this country which I feel is now taken over by extremists – they are attacking us, we are in almost a real war.” How she say “K” herself he doesn’t see democracy in Israel as fragile. “It is based on Judaism and democracy, on the Fundamental Laws of the Declaration of Independence, which with the contribution of David Ben-Gurion, we adopted the universal values ​​of freedom and equality.”

ABOUT planned changes and reforms of the Netanyahu government, he believes that they “could shake the foundations of the country”in particular, as he says, when the government does not ask anyone about what it seeks to do – “mainly in order to forgive the Israeli prime minister and his associates their “sins”. At the expense of Netanyahu, it is recalled that a criminal case has been opened on charges of corruption.

“My mom I survived Auschwitz, Zionist and loyal to the fundamental values ​​of democracy. Our country was built by these people on the values ​​of justice,” adds Tal Bashan.

“10% of citizens take to the streets, shout “enough” and this cannot be ignored. What I can’t understand is why such a rush to pass all these laws before Easter. It’s as if they are in a hurry to take revenge for something, but I can’t understand what it is – except to learn to hide behind, ”our interlocutor emphasizes.

“Fortunately, however, police at demonstrations are fair and humane. He understands us, even though the Minister of National Security [σ.σ. ο Ιταμάρ Μπεν-Γκβιρ, επικεφαλής του Εβραϊκού Εθνικού Μετώπου] he tries to influence the officers by visiting the police headquarters, in violation of the law that forbids him from participating in the daily work of the police. Even the governor of Tel Aviv is trying to change because he is too soft on the protesters, but fortunately the police won’t listen to him.”

But there is also an additional surrounding fear. “We fear that in the event of mass settlements, the Palestinians will react. That there will be terrorist reactions to everything the government does in the West Bank. We all hope that won’t happen, but how sure can we be? We are counting on the economic effect that will worry the rulers, on pressure from the United States. We hope that even at the last minute the government will back down,” says Tal Bashan.

“The protests are unprecedented in scope and involve an impressively wide range of society,” he tells us. Jonathan YuvalSenior Policy Analyst at Mitvim, Israel Institute for Regional International Affairs.

“In addition to ordinary citizens with political positions ranging from the left to the centre-right, the protests brought to the fore critical areas of Israeli public life., including lawyers, economists and businessmen, even the military and security forces. In fact, thousands of reservists in some of the Israel Defense Forces’ most advanced and sensitive units have been warned they will refuse to serve if the judicial oversight passes,” he adds, participating in the protests.

Yonatan Yuval, in an interview with K, assesses that the Netanyahu government did not expect such a public reaction to its legislative agenda and is “sandwiched”: “On the one hand, it does not want to let citizens’ requests through, fearing that the political price will be very high, the coalition may fall apart. On the other hand, she understands that the completion of the legislative agenda will provoke a much deeper social and political crisis, for which she herself will be responsible.”

And Jonathan Yuval, however, fears, as he tells us, that the government will succeed in getting through its agenda – or at least a slightly modified version of it – and that it will somehow overcome the opposition through attrition or some kind of distraction. . safety problems. “A fragmentation of legislation into small parts And transfer of multiple accounts over a long period of time this could reduce the sense of urgency on the part of opponents of the government, as well as make it harder in the long run to maintain pressure through mass protests.”

And on the other hand, “increasing the rhetoric, for example, about Iran (which Netanyahu did in the past) and thereby creating false sense of a growing security crisis which would turn any ongoing opposition to the government into an act of irresponsible dissent bordering on treason.”

“If that happens,” Yonatan Yuval adds, “Israel will turn into a dictatorship with a permanent government of the extreme right.”

Despite this, there is also a glimmer of hope for him. “What the current crisis will force society to address some long-ignored issues, such as the need for a constitution “Israel urgently needs this – and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, which is inextricably linked to the current crisis, as it is partly fueled by ultra-nationalists who want free access to the West Bank, including its possible annexation, without any restrictions from the Supreme Court.”

As K wrote with reference to the American Vox, the Republic of Israel is going through a period of crisis, arguing that this crisis is inextricably linked to the “erosion of human rights in the occupied Palestinian territories,” Jonathan Geyer believes. .

Thus, according to the same analysis, Netanyahu can avoid personal accusations, ultra-nationalist settlements believe the way can be cleared for annexation of the West Bank, and ultra-Orthodoxists will limit the possibility that their exemption from military service will be found unconstitutional.

“But let’s not forget one thing: the core of the problem is Netanyahu. He is the one who allows them all to do this,” concludes Tal Bashan.