Live Update arrow right icon From the Liveblog of Thursday, September 21, 2023

Dozens rally in Netanyahu’s support outside NYC hotel, near protest against PM

22 September 2023, 3:47 am 1 Edit

Several dozen people take part in what appears to be the first New York City rally this week in support of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, next to the Manhattan hotel in which he’s staying this week for the UN General Assembly.

Across the street, a larger protest against Netanyahu is taking place, with Rabbi Rick Jacobs of the Union for Reform Judaism in attendance, a day before he attends a meeting Netanyahu will have with US Jewish community leaders.

Led by Rabbi Shmuley Boteach, the pro-Netanyahu demonstrators sing, hold up Israel flags and signs including “New York loves Bibi,” and chant “Bibi,” after the premier’s nickname.

Prof. Alan Dershowitz says that while he’s “not a supporter” of most of the Netanyahu government’s proposed judicial overhaul, critics’ charge that it will end democracy “is total nonsense” and is “a blood libel.”

The rally has been promoted by the Zionist Organization of America as aimed at showing “support for Israel’s democratically-elected government and Prime Minister, Bibi Netanyahu.”

ZOA has slammed the anti-Netanyahu protests as “billionaire-funded far-left groups that seek to undermine the results of Israel’s democratic elections (while falsely claiming to be for democracy) and by Palestine/Arab hate groups that seek Israel’s annihilation.”

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