About 150,000 people attended the rally, one of the largest since Israel’s war on Gaza began.
Tens of thousands of protesters rallied in Tel Aviv on Saturday, waving Israeli flags and chanting slogans against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government, demanding new elections and the repatriation of prisoners held in the Gaza Strip.
Mass protests have erupted weekly in Israeli cities over Netanyahu’s handling of the nearly nine-month-long war in Gaza that began with Hamas’ October 7 attack on southern Israel.
As people poured into the main thoroughfares of Israel’s largest city, many protesters held signs reading “Crime Minister” and “Stop the War.”
“I came here because I fear for my grandson’s future. If we don’t go out and get rid of this terrible government, there will be no future for them,” said contractor Shai Erel, 66. “All the rats in the Knesset… Kindergarten security guard.”
Hofshi Israel, an anti-government protest group, estimated that more than 150,000 people attended the rally, calling it the largest since Israel’s war in the Gaza Strip.
Some protesters lay on the red-painted floor in the city’s Democracy Square, protesting what they called the end of the country’s democracy under Netanyahu.
Former Israeli Shin Bet security chief Yuval Diskin called Netanyahu Israel’s “worst prime minister” in a speech to the crowd.
Many are frustrated, accusing the right-wing coalition, which includes Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gbir and other far-right ultranationalists, of prolonging the war in Gaza and endangering national security and prisoners.
Yoram, a 50-year-old tour guide who declined to give his last name, said he was attending protests every week because Israel needed elections “yesterday” because of Netanyahu.
“I really want the government to fall. “If we go to 2026, the original election date, it will not be a democratic election,” he said.
A rally in Tel Aviv on Saturday night drew thousands of relatives and supporters of the prisoners.
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