The Knesset voted on Monday, December 23, to extend the country’s state of emergency until December 16, 2025, in accordance with the recommendation of the far-right cabinet. Twenty-nine MKs voted in support of the resolution, while seven voted against, among them all Hadash MKs.
The Knesset last extended the state of emergency in May but then did so for only six months. The state of emergency allows the cabinet to issue regulations that override Knesset legislation.
Despite the state of emergency, tens of thousands of Israelis protested for the release of hostages and against the far-right government, for another consecutive Saturday night, amid optimistic reports of progress in talks. As well as Tel Aviv, protests were held in Jerusalem, Be’er Sheva, Sha’ar HaNegev, Haifa, Kiryat Gat, Nes Ziona, Kfar Sava, Raanana, Modi’in, Herzliya, Ofakim and dozens of localtities.
“Power to democracy”, protest against prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the far-right government in Habima Square at Tel Aviv, December 21, 2024 (Photo: Avshalom Sassoni / Flash 90)
Hostage families and their supporters held two separate, thousands-strong protests in Tel Aviv last Saturday. During the protests across Israel, Hadash and anti-occupation activists gathered against war and occupation accusing the government of committing genocide in Gaza. In Jerusalem the anti-war block called for immediate ceasefire and an end to the genocide in Gaza and blocked a major intersection in the city. Police violently forced the protestors off the road.
The Hostages Families Forum held a rally in Tel Aviv on Saturday, demanding a deal that would guarantee the return of all the hostages. The rally was addressed by members of the families and relatives of the hostages, as well as hostages who were returned in the previous deal.
In the statement of the families, Einav Zangauker, mother of hostage Matan Zangauker, who earlier this week marked his second birthday in Hamas captivity, spoke and said, “We heard tonight that the prime minister said in an interview with foreign media that he would not agree to end the war ‘before we remove Hamas.’ This is another attempt at torpedoing [the deal].”
“The same prime minister who deliberately did not act to replace the Hamas government is now using this as an excuse to prolong the war and abandon the hostages. Netanyahu wants to bury my Matan in the tunnels. An end to the war in Gaza and a comprehensive deal to return all the hostages – this is in Israel’s interest! Hamas has been defeated. Its leadership has been eliminated. There is no justification for continuing the war in Gaza.”
Danny Elgert, brother of hostage Itzik Elgert, said, “This week, the vile and evil manner in which Netanyahu’s nest is run together with his family members, and how the poison machine is operated, was revealed.” “We are once again reminded of the hate campaign that came out of Netanyahu’s office and was launched against us, the families, and against a deal. A fraud operation on behalf of Netanyahu and his people was launched on the public in order to torpedo a deal. Netanyahu, look the families in the eye! You humiliated us, trampled us, turned us into public enemies. The only thing left for you to do is fulfill the will of the people, end the war.”
According to a poll published by Maariv on Friday, a substantial 74% of the public says Israel should pursue a comprehensive deal to secure the return of all hostages, even if it requires halting the fighting in Gaza. Among opposition voters, support reaches 84%, while 57% of coalition voters agree. In contrast, only 16% favor a partial deal, and 10% remain undecided.
In addition, text messages published Thursday purport to show that Sara Netanyahu, the wife of Prime Minister Netanyahu, was instrumental in efforts to combat those perceived as enemies of the family, going so far as to instruct her husband’s secretary to send activists of his Likud party to hurl obscenities at their neighbors, the parents of a fallen military pilot, who were active in demonstrations against the premier.
The correspondence of Benjamin Netanyahu’s late aide Hanni Bleiweiss, published by Channel 12 investigative program “Uvda” (facts), indicated that the premier’s wife and son were active in efforts to dig up dirt on his political rivals; intimidate key actors in his corruption trial; and sic law enforcement on protesters against him, while seeking the promotion of police officers who complied with the request.
While apparently willing to send agitators to the private home of her bereaved neighbors, Sara Netanyahu was unhappy with the protests outside her own home in Caesarea and the prime minister’s official residence on Jerusalem’s Balfour Street, the TV report said. In one instance, during a protest outside the Netanyahus’ Caesarea home, Sara Netanyahu was said to order Bleiweiss to bring in Likud activists to stage a counter-protest. Bleiweiss reportedly went the extra mile, saying that she had asked then-interior security minister Amir Ohana to make sure the anti-Netanyahu protesters were handed NIS 1,000 ($275) fines “for violating COVID-19 restrictions.”
In another message cited by Uvda, Bleiweiss bemoaned the fact that then-Tel Aviv police chief Daniel Levy could not deal with the Balfour protesters in Jerusalem. “Look at Tel Aviv,” she reportedly wrote, praising how Levy had “picked up the leftists and used violence” in dispersing protests. Levy was made police commissioner earlier this year by Ohana’s successor, racist National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir. According to Haaretz, “The report on the investigative news show ‘Uvda’ confirmed what we all knew but were unable to prove: that the Prime Minister’s ‘poison machine’ was operated directly from the prime minister’s residence by none other than Sara Netanyahu.”
