New York protests were an ‘attack,’ Simcha Rothman and wife say

Hannah Rothman, wife of Knesset Constitution, Law and Justice Committee chairman MK Simcha Rothman, said on KAN Radio on Sunday that the incident on Friday evening in which Rothman snatched a megaphone from a protestor in New York occurred because the two had been under attack.

According to Hannah Rothman, a group of approximately 10 people surrounded her and her husband after they left a Friday night dinner with the Jewish Agency, and shouted “Demon-Rothman,” with one even yelling “I hope your life is short.” Some of the protestors, including at least one with a megaphone, came within 10 centimeters of her, she said.

“I do not understand how they are still running free,” Hannah Rothman said.

This description of the events echoed those of the Knesset member himself, who described on Facebook on Sunday morning that he and the security guards had repeatedly told the protesters to stay away, and ” after all the warnings, I took the megaphone that the demonstrator had pushed into my ear – without touching [the demonstrator], of course. After about half a block we reached a place where we could go inside and wait for the police,” whom Rothman’s entourage had called earlier.

Rothman added, “During Shabbat, and also during my visit on Thursday, the Jewish community here welcomed me with great joy. With respect and appreciation. There is a lot of support and encouragement for promoting judicial reform, but even those few who do not agree with it came and were respectful.” 

“The violent attackers came from Israel. In Israel, they represent a small and violent group; they do here, too. Demonstrating is allowed. It is forbidden to physically attack and harass Knesset members. The fact that [Yesh Atid chairman MK] Yair Lapid and [National Unity chairman MK] Benny Gantz do not condemn the violent attacks on Knesset members, and even encourage them, indicates more than anything else that they have become an opposition to the state,” Rothman added.

The protestors came from two protest organizations, “UnXeptable,” which operates in the United States, and “Brothers in Arms,” which mainly includes reservists.

Judicial reform protests reach Rothman in New York

In two video clips that circulated on social media, the protestors are heard yelling at the MK. Rothman, who is a central driving force behind the government’s judicial overhaul legislation, appeared to lose his temper with the group, turning around suddenly and forcing the megaphone out of the protester’s hands.He then continued walking, still holding the megaphone, as his security guards rushed to catch up with him.

In a second video clip, a protester can be seen running up to Rothman in an attempt to take back the megaphone. However, before he could approach the MK, he was thrown to the ground by a security guard, pulling a second protester down with him as he fell.

“He’s a violent man! A violent man,” the person recording the video can be heard shouting in Hebrew as Rothman and his security guards continued walking. “I thought you were just violent with the legislation? Thief!”

After continuing to walk for around 30 seconds, Rothman then returned the megaphone to the protesters without saying anything to them.

According to a statement from the anti-government protest groups, the protester that was assaulted is a lawyer and graduate student at Columbia University. The protester filed a complaint at a police station, but the case was closed on Sunday.

“Even Rothman’s violence will not break our resolve and the historic protest will only gain momentum,” the protester in question said. “We stand here in solidarity and support with our families and friends in Israel who are steadfastly defending Israeli democracy.”

Shani Granot-Lubaton, the organizer of the New York protests, stated, “In Manhattan there is still democracy, and therefore we can tell MK Rothman face-to-face what we think, and no police officer will stop us from exercising our basic freedom of expression.”

Rothman received support from fellow party and coalition members.

“I wish to strengthen MK Rothman who is leading and will continue to lead, in the name of all of us, the necessary amendments in the judicial system,” Finance Smotrich wrote on Twitter.

“The violence towards him has crossed red lines a long time ago, and I hope law enforcement in Israel and the United States will bring to justice the violent band of trolls who are eroding the foundations of democracy, and uproot violence from the source,” Smotrich wrote.  

Last Sunday, Rothman was met with hundreds of protesters as he arrived at Tel Aviv University in order to participate in a conference. While he was inside the conference, demonstrators plastered his car with stickers representing various anti-government protest movements, and he was surrounded by protestors with flags after leaving the building. The prime minister and a large number of coalition Knesset members condemned what they said was an act of violence, while opposition leader MK Yair Lapid said that Rothman should “stop whining” and that being “attacked by a sticker” did not constitute violence.

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