Herzog and Gantz denounce Tel Aviv ramming, warn against ‘return to October 6’

President Isaac Herzog and other political leaders denounce the suspected ramming of protesters by a driver in Tel Aviv, wounding five people.

In a statement calling the incident “most grave,” Herzog warns “violence is a red line that must never be crossed” and calls for those acting violently to be brought to justice.

“We cannot return to October 6,” he says, referring to the political and societal tensions roiling Israel before the Hamas terror onslaught that started the ongoing war in Gaza. “We must do everything to maintain the unity of Israel. Only together will we defeat our enemies.”

War Cabinet Minister Benny Gantz denounces the “horrific” incident and says “we all must speak out with a clear voice against all violence.” He also slams “comparisons of the protesters to our enemies and accusing them of wanting to murder the prime minister.”

“All public leaders should act sensitively toward all parts of society, particularly in these difficult days,” adds Gantz, while similarly warning against a return “to the days before October 7.”

MK Chili Troper of Gantz’s National Unity party calls for the incident to be widely denounced, specifically saying Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu “and the entire leadership” should do so, adding that “whoever is quiet in the face of incitement cannot say their hands are clean.”

Opposition leader Yair Lapid suggests Netanyahu is responsible, charging the ramming was “the direct result of the rising incitement from the government.”

“They will not be deter us and or stop us from protesting until the hostages return and this terrible government falls,” Lapid says.