2 detained for assaulting anti-overhaul protesters near Likud MK’s home

Police detained two suspects for assaulting anti-government protesters outside a Likud lawmaker’s home in southern Israel.

The incident near MK Shalom Danino’s house in Omer came as demonstrators have increasingly been rallying outside coalition members’ homes as part of their push to ramp up protests against the government’s judicial overhaul legislation.

In footage from the southern town, a man driving a pickup truck can be seen getting out of the vehicle and attacking a protester, as another then responds by throwing what appears to be food at him.

As he clashed with the protesters, another man then hopped out of the truck and joined the scuffle, striking demonstrators and yelling at them “to get back.”

“I’ll fuck you up,” he can be heard saying several times.

In a second video clip, several protesters can be seen moving out from in front of the truck as the driver advances, before getting out and swinging at a demonstrator’s head.

תיעוד: נהג תקף מפגינים שמחו מול ביתו של ח״כ שלום דנינו מהליכוד בעומר@Itsik_zuarets pic.twitter.com/GBxeRxFDwe

— כאן חדשות (@kann_news) July 7, 2023

The protesters, one of whom the Haaretz daily reported was lightly hurt, accused the driver of trying to run them over.

Police later detained the suspects — a father and his son — and said they were looking into the matter.

נהג טנדר נכנס בין קהל המפגינים ליד ביתו של שלום דנינו בעומר, ובהמשך היכה אנשים pic.twitter.com/Fg3uqB0NFF

— Nati Yefet (@ntiyft) July 7, 2023

The incident came after a driver plowed through demonstrators blocking Tel Aviv’s Ayalon Highway Wednesday night, injuring at least one protester before being pulled over and arrested by police. The driver was released from police custody under a restraining order the next morning after being questioned. He alleged that he did not hit the protesters on purpose, but rather that he became stuck with his car in the rally and tried to make his way out of the crowd.

On Thursday, leaders of the ongoing protests pledged to hold a protest “such as has never been seen before in Israel” next Tuesday, a day after the Knesset is due to hold the first of three plenum votes on a bill that would block courts from exercising judicial review over the reasonableness of government decisions.

The bill, which would prevent the judiciary from using the “reasonableness” doctrine to review decisions made by the cabinet, government ministers and unspecified other elected officials, was approved by the Knesset’s Constitution, Law, and Justice Committee on Tuesday and is set for its first reading next week.

The coalition reportedly aims to have it enacted into law before the Knesset breaks for summer recess at the end of July.