Protesters blocked roads across Israel and demonstrated at Ben-Gurion Airport and additional locations on Tuesday morning, in a “Day of Resistance” in protest against the Reasonableness Standard Bill passing its first reading in Knesset on Monday night.
At Ben-Gurion Airport, a group of Yom Kippur War veterans and the “Building an Alternative” protest movement gathered in the arrivals hall with signs reading “Welcome to Gilead” and “Blessed be the fruit” in reference to the book The Handmaid’s Tale.
Demonstrators also blocked Highway 2 near Haifa, the Ayalon Highway in Tel Aviv, and Highway 1 near Jerusalem and Begin Road in Jerusalem.
In Herzliya, protesters set up tents and burned tires in the middle of the HaSira Junction, blocking the road on Tuesday morning before being forcibly removed by police.
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Roads were also blocked in Tirat Hacarmel, Modi’in, and Binyamina. Police said they were operating at the various protest locations in efforts to clear roads and prevent disruptions.
Protesters against the judicial reform in Ben-Gurion Airport. July 11, 2023 (credit: Michel Braunstein)In Haifa, hundreds of protesters gathered in front of a court in the city.
Additional protests were planned for throughout the day in Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Rishon Lezion, Eilat, and dozens of other cities, towns, and junctions.
“This is the day for citizens to come out and defend Israeli democracy,” said the Kaplan Force protest movement. “The horror show last night in the plenary showed every citizen the magnitude of the hour. Against the dictatorship coalition – only the people will save Israel.”
Reasonableness Standard Bill passes, to be brought for committee finalization within hours
On Monday night, the controversial Reasonableness Standard Bill passed in a first reading in the Knesset plenum by a vote of 64 to 56 with plans to bring the bill already to the Knesset Constitution, Law and Justice Committee on Tuesday to prepare it for a second and third reading.
The “reasonableness standard bill” is an amendment to Basic Law: The Judiciary, that would block Israel’s courts from applying what is known as the “reasonableness standard” to decisions made by elected officials. The reasonableness standard is a common law doctrine that allows for judicial review against government administrative decisions that are deemed beyond the scope of what a responsible and reasonable authority would undertake.
Eliav Breuer contributed to this report.
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