Police stand guard outside a Tel Aviv salon where protesters demonstrated against the government’s planned judicial overhaul on March 1, 2023 after learning that the PM’s wife Sarah Netanyahu was getting her hair done inside. , Photo Credit: AP
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his allies denounced protesters as “anarchists” on Thursday after they demonstrated en masse outside the Tel Aviv salon where his wife was getting her hair cut – amid the government’s move to overhaul the judiciary. A chaotic end to a day of demonstrations against the plan.
Sara Netanyahu has long been a polarizing figure in Israel, and the incident late Wednesday in a posh neighborhood in Tel Aviv divided Israel’s emotionally charged overhaul, seen by opponents as a potential threat to the country as seen. Protesters outside the salon were chanting “Shame on you, shame on you” – but they did not try to force their way inside the salon. Hundreds of police were dispatched to the scene and he was eventually taken away in a limousine.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Netanyahu and his political allies have shown no reluctance in pushing to pass a series of bills to overhaul Israel’s judiciary. The moves have further infuriated a country already in deep crisis and sparked the biggest protests in a decade.
Protest organizers plan more demonstrations on Thursday, a day after their self-proclaimed “day of disruption” turned violent when police used a heavy hand against participants in a Tel Aviv rally.
Thursday’s demonstrations in Jerusalem are expected to include speeches by former government ministers and senior security officials. Former top economists, including two former heads of the Bank of Israel and a Nobel laureate, were set to speak at a conference in Tel Aviv about the economic fallout from the overhaul.
Justice Minister Yariv Levin, one of the architects of the judicial overhaul, said on Wednesday night that despite growing public outcry, PM Netanyahu’s government “will not stop the law.”
The proposed bills would give politicians and parliament control over judicial appointments, the power to overrule the Supreme Court and the ability to pass laws impervious to judicial review.
Critics of the plan include a growing number of former military officers, academics, economists and business leaders. They say these changes will topple the country’s delicate system of checks and balances and destroy democratic institutions. PM Netanyahu and his ultra-nationalist and ultra-conservative allies say the changes are necessary to rein in the power of unelected judges.
The battle over the judiciary overhaul comes as Netanyahu’s trial on charges of accepting bribes, fraud and breach of trust. The longtime leader has dismissed the allegations against him as part of a “witch hunt” by a biased law-enforcement, judiciary and press.
On Wednesday, thousands of Israelis participated in demonstrations across the country as Prime Minister Netanyahu’s new government attempted to weaken the Supreme Court and concentrate power in the hands of the ruling coalition.
Protesters blocked highways and major intersections in Tel Aviv and gathered outside the prime minister’s official residence in Jerusalem. For the first time since the protests began two months ago, the scene in the streets turned violent when Public Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, a hardline anti-establishment nationalist, ordered the police to crack down on protesters, claiming that They were “anarchists”. At least 11 people were hospitalized and police arrested dozens.
Wednesday’s incident climaxed outside a north Tel Aviv salon where the prime minister’s wife was getting her hair done.
The salon’s hairstylist Moshe Batbul told Israeli news site Ynet that another customer posted a selfie with Sara Netanyahu. He claimed that “thousands arrived within minutes”, although the actual number of protesters may be lower based on videos posted online.
Journalists present at the spot said that the crowd kept their distance and did not try to enter the salon. Ben-Gvir then dispatched a large number of security forces to the salon, saying on Twitter that he had ordered the police to “save her life” from the protesters who “surrounded” the salon.
Hundreds of police officers, including mounted police, broke a path through the demonstration to let an SUV through. Guarded by a crowd of police, Sara Netanyahu was ushered out of the salon and taken to the vehicle, which drove under heavy police protection.
“The chaos has to stop,” Netanyahu said in a Facebook post alongside a photo of him hugging his wife. “It could lead to loss of life.”
Netanyahu’s aides came to Sara Netanyahu’s defense on Thursday morning.
Israel’s Minister of Public Diplomacy, Galit Distel Atberian, described the incident as “three hours of terror in which a woman was surrounded by an inciting mob.” Another Likud lawmaker wrote on Twitter that the prime minister’s wife was “rescued from lynching” by a mob of “anarchists”.
Yair Golan, a former general and one-time lawmaker from the Meretz party, told Cannes Radio that “with all due respect, Sara Netanyahu is a political figure.”
Noting her immense political influence in the Prime Minister’s Office, Golan alleged that “she is involved in decision-making at the national level and approves senior appointments left and right.”
Netanyahu has been criticized for being out of touch with regular Israelis and living a lavish lifestyle at taxpayer expense. Last week, an Israeli parliamentary committee approved new funding for Netanyahu and his family.