Israel's Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has good reason to put himself beyond the reach of the nation's courts: he's on trial on corruption charges. But for his far-right government, bringing judges to heel would be useful for so many other things, too. 400,000 marchers were on the streets Saturday, according to organizers, including IDF reservists. The rallies led to clashes with police.
Police used horse-mounted cops and water cannons against the demonstrators as they sought to disperse them, with the Haaretz news site reporting that this had happened while the protesters were leaving the highway anyway and was not preceded by violence. Officials said at least four were detained. The highway was eventually reopened for traffic after around an hour of closures.
At the same time, protest leaders announced that Thursday, March 9 would serve as the next "day of disruptions" around the country — a repeat of events this past Wednesday when protests and road blockages took place throughout the country, with violence between police and some protesters in Tel Aviv.
Speaking earlier at the Tel Aviv rally, former Likud minister Limor Livnat jokingly greeted demonstrators with the names they've been called by Ben Gvir and other opponents: "Good evening 'anarchists,' good evening 'terrorists' — good evening patriots."
