Protesters gathered in Jerusalem for the seventh straight day of protests in the capital and the eighth day of significant protest around the country following an announcement by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that he intends to fire Shin Bet (Israeli Security Agency) head, Ronen Bar.
Protesters blocked multiple entrances to the Knesset while a vote was held on the 2025 budget, as police attempted to disperse them.
At least six were arrested near the Knesset, according to Maarach Otef Atzurim, a legal aid organization that provides free services to protesters. Another woman was arrested Tuesday morning when reading the names of the hostages still in Gaza outside the home of Education Minister Yoav Kisch, the organization said. The woman was released a few hours later by the court because she had not committed any offense, the organization added.
Additional protests are planned for the course of the day and the rest of the week, with some actions focused primarily on the hostages and others designed to protest the perceived return of the judicial reform.
Bring them home
Protesters in the past week have also called on the government to bring the hostages home. Some have called for the end of the war after Israel renewed attacks in Gaza just a day after the announcement of the firing of Bar.
The move to fire Bar is seen as a direct continuation of the contentious judicial reform, as was the Sunday vote of no confidence in Attorney-General Gali Baharav Miara.
A protest march along Jerusalem’s Aza Street towards the Knesset, March 25, 2025. (Credit: @change_dir_il)
Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana responded to the protest, calling on law enforcement to use the full extent of the law against protesters and calling them criminals.
He said enforcement should “not make do with arrests, but bring protesters to justice. There is freedom of expression in The State of Israel, but no one is free to forcibly block the democratic process – that is outside of the bounds of the game,” he said.
Democrats Party head Yair Golan responded to Ohana, saying that “if Amir Ohana is looking to arrest and bring to justice those hurting the democratic process, he should look in the mirror.”
“The protesters for the rule of law are not those who are harming democracy,” he added, saying that it is “this government that is looting the public coffers and passing a budget for draft dodgers, the corrupt, and loyal only.”
Jesus Christ is King
