Thousands protest in north against government ‘abandonment,’ demand early elections
Activists decry government’s desertion of north to Hezbollah attacks, demand hostage deal; left-wing rallies in Tel Aviv call for agreement to end Israeli-Palestinian conflict
Michael Horovitz is a breaking news editor at The Times of Israel
Anti-government protesters on Thursday rallied in the northern town of Karmiel, demanding the restoration of security to areas under daily attacks by Hezbollah, early elections, and a deal to free hostages held in Gaza.
Protesters blocked Route 85 at the Karmiel Junction, with permission from the police, waving Israeli and Druze flags, and carrying banners accusing the government of “abandoning” the north.
Hebrew media reported that thousands of activists attended the demonstration, including northern residents and their supporters from across the country.
Activists in the north have called on the government to take action — either military or diplomatic — to bring an end to Hezbollah attacks on northern communities in recent months that have left them displaced from their homes.
Eyal Eshel, the father of Roni Eshel, a soldier slain on October 7, expressed his disbelief that 10 months had passed since he had seen his daughter, in an address to protesters.
“From here, I say here and I promise, we will not rest and we will not be silent on the failure, the contempt, and the abandonment. We will fight until the establishment of a state commission of inquiry to learn what needs to be fixed. To dismiss those who need to go,” he said, referencing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s refusal to establish a commission of inquiry into the October 7 massacre, despite calls from the opposition and his own defense minister to do so.
“We will not abandon anyone, not the residents of the north, not the residents of the south, not the hostage families, and not the families of the fallen. Because we are one nation,” Eshel added.
Pro-democracy protest leader Prof. Shikma Bressler told the crowd that the abandonment of the hostages and the north was “consistent with the bigoted, racist worldview that has taken over the Israeli government and is leading us all to destruction.”
“We are not members of Congress, we are residents of the land, its loyal lovers,” Dr. Amir Khnifess, chair of the Druze Movement for Democracy and Equality told the crowd, appearing to reference Netanyahu’s warm reception when he spoke to US representatives Wednesday.
Khnifess said that protesters understood how a “prosperous country” could be turned into the “punching bag of the Middle East.”
“We will not name a square or building after you, not even a chicken coop. Your place in history will be remembered as the one who destroyed the north and its settlements, its agriculture, and the development of the most beautiful area of Israel,” he said.
Reut Forstner Avraham, a farm owner and protest leader from Kibbutz Amiad, claimed the government had “neglected” the north for years, but since October 7, it has been “completely abandoned.”
“This government has proven in its countless actions and failures that it simply does not take the north into account. Zero actions to implement its own decisions for the rehabilitation and development of the north,” she said.
Some 60,000 northern residents have been evacuated since Hezbollah-led forces began attacking Israeli communities and military posts along the border on a near-daily basis on October 8, with the group saying it is doing so to support Gaza amid the war there.
So far, the skirmishes have resulted in 12 civilian deaths on the Israeli side, as well as the deaths of 18 IDF soldiers and reservists. There have also been several attacks from Syria, without any injuries.
Hezbollah has named 375 members who have been killed by Israel during the ongoing skirmishes, mostly in Lebanon but some also in Syria. In Lebanon, another 68 operatives from other terror groups, a Lebanese soldier, and dozens of civilians have been killed.
Thousands call for peace in Tel Aviv
Meanwhile, in Tel Aviv, thousands attended the “March for Peace and Life” from Habima Square to Dizengoff Square, calling for a deal to end the war and return the hostages, as well as a lasting peace agreement with the Palestinians.
Demonstrators carried signs reading “yes to peace,” chanted “only peace will lead to security,” and “both in Gaza and Sderot, girls want to live.”
The demonstration was organized by Israel’s prominent left-wing movements, including Standing Together, Women Wage Peace, Peace Now, and Breaking the Silence, among others.
עכשיו בכיכר הבימה המשטרה עצרה מפגינה שהניפה ציור של אבטיח pic.twitter.com/BiA0u9uiPY
— Tomer Appelbaum (@tomerappelbaum) July 25, 2024
During the gathering at Habima Square, a woman was photographed being arrested for carrying a picture of a watermelon. The watermelon has been used to symbolize the Palestinian flag, which shares its colors, amid a police crackdown on protesters carrying the actual flag.
Rula Daood, the co-director of Standing Together, told protesters that “Gaza is a disaster area,” decrying the suffering of innocent civilians and the deaths of children in the conflict.
“Can someone in the world tell me that those children are guilty of something? Can someone in this world tell me that they deserve it?” she asked the crowd.
“I am here because I demand and struggle for a better future, free for Palestinians, but also for Israelis. I am here because I know that our fates are tied to one another and that this land is a land for all of us. I choose truth, and this is the truth: in this land, two nations live, and neither one is going anywhere,” she said.
Israel’s left has been in sharp decline for years now, and its struggle to regain prominence in the political sphere has only become more difficult since since the start of the war on October 7, when the Hamas terror group stormed southern Israeli communities, killing some 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages, 111 of whom remain in Gaza.
Earlier this month, the bloc convened in Tel Aviv to reaffirm its basic premise following October 7 — only a negotiated political resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict that ensures equality for both peoples can prevent another massacre.
Charlie Summers and Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.
