Ahead of Tel Aviv rally, protest organizer says ‘the period of naivety is over’

Ahead of a planned demonstration this evening in Tel Aviv against the government’s policies to address the economic fallout accompanying the coronavirus pandemic, one of the protest’s organizers stresses the event is not meant to be a show of opposition to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

“This isn’t a political protest, it’s a protest of the people,” Ronen Maili, head of the Israel Bars and Clubs Association, tells the Kann public broadcaster.

Commenting on the financial aid package Netanyahu unveiled during a press conference Thursday, Maili describes it as a “pretty presentation,” but says demonstrators want immediate action.

“We want to see the money in the bank. The period of naivety is over,” he says.

While generally complimentary of the aid plan, Maili calls for some changes.

“We’re businesses people. Until it’s closed, it’s not closed,” he says.