To Protect and Serve?

Last Friday, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu shared a video on Twitter called “The Incitement to Murder the Prime Minister and His Family Reaches New Heights,” a provocative compilation of death threats against Netanyahu and his family that have appeared on social media and been shouted during recent protests. He wrote: “I hope we can stop with these terrible demonstrations of incitement and hate, and come together as a People and a country in our efforts to defeat the coronavirus and save the lives and livelihoods of Israeli citizens.”

Former senior members of the defense establishment said this week that Netanyahu’s security is tighter than ever and his family members are well protected. Still, there’s no question that the level of violence at anti-Netanyahu rallies is heating up. Last weekend, at least 10,000 people participated in an anti-Netanyahu rally in Jerusalem. It would be easy to dismiss the protests against Netanyahu’s as purely political, but a quick survey of protesters shows that their political orientation spans the gamut. Many are simply fed up with the deteriorating economic situation and the coronavirus crisis. There’s a growing feeling that it’s time for a change of the guard.

Maj. Gen. Arieh Amit (retired), former commander of the Jerusalem police district, said a violent tone has entered Israel’s political discourse. “I’m sure it will end in assault or murder of a protester,” he said.

Israel has seen several massive protests over the past few weeks. After a series of violent incidents directed at anti-Netanyahu protesters, there were claims that the police are not doing enough to protect the demonstrators. The police have countered that they lack the manpower to monitor everyone. “It’s natural that in a protest against the government, there’s suspicion toward the police,” Amit said. “Often there’s no coordination with the police; and even when there is coordination, demonstrators sometimes break into spontaneous marches. A situation is created where the police can’t guarantee 100 percent protection, not for one side and for the other. One man with a knife will come along and no one will be able to stop him.”