Posted on 02/08/22
| News Source: i24
Demonstrations taking place at intersections across the country
Protests against the coalition government led by Prime Minister Naftali Bennett were taking place across Israel on Tuesday evening.
Right-wing Israelis were demonstrating at intersections and junctions up and down the country, at about 100 different locations.
The Israeli police surveillance scandal and the rising cost of living are among the issues bringing people out to protest.
More traditional right-wing issues, including the Jewish identity of the state, are also driving the demonstrations, i24NEWS senior correspondent Owen Alterman reported from Jerusalem.
The unity government that formed last June includes the Islamist Ra'am party led by Mansour Abbas. It has increased support for the Arab sector, including billions of shekels to fight crime and boost economic development.
The new government has also sparked controversy in the religious and right-wing camps with proposed reforms to the state's conversion and kashrut laws.
Israel's right wing, however, did have something to celebrate at the protest, Alterman reported, because of the legislative victory in Israel's parliament, the Knesset, with the passing of the first reading of the so-called Citizenship Law.
The bill passed with support from both the coalition and the opposition. It would deny citizenship or residency to Palestinians who marry Israeli citizens.