Tel Aviv, July 18 (AFP/APP): Israelis on Tuesday marched on highways and blocked army headquarters in Tel Aviv in the run-up to a parliament vote on the government’s judicial reform agenda protesters say would “dismantle democracy”.
The proposals have divided the nation and triggered one of the biggest protest movements in Israel’s history since being unveiled in January by the hard-right government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Weekly rallies across Israel have drawn tens of thousands of protesters aiming to prevent what they believe could open the way to more authoritarian government.
Crowds gathered in the coastal city of Tel Aviv, Israel’s commercial hub, early on Tuesday after organisers had called for a “national day of resistance” ahead of a planned vote by lawmakers on a key clause later this month.
Organisers urged supporters to rally at train stations, city squares, highways, and roundabouts across Israel.
Demonstrators holding Israeli flags and chanting “democracy, democracy” marched on highways and bridges, and blocked several roads as well as an entrance to the military’s headquarters in Tel Aviv, AFP correspondents reported.
Opponents of the government’s reforms also entered the stock exchange building in the city and staged a rally there.
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