Israel: Anti-Netanyahu protesters defy police ban to march through Jerusalem

In Jerusalem, hundreds defied a police ban to march through the city to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s residence on the Balfour Street in protest against the head of the government.

According to the Times of Israel, the police initially tried to stop the protesters as they started the march at the Chords Bridge in another night of unrest.

While some five arrests were made amid the scuffles, the police eventually allowed the demonstrators to proceed to their destination, where some 1,500 people gathered to protest.

The demonstration went ahead despite the police striking down the request for holding the march from the organizers.

The position of the police is not to allow this march which, depending on the route, could disturb residents and visitors, as it is the main route into and out of the city,” Jerusalem police said in a statement.

The force added that it suggested a number of alternative paths, but the organizers rejected all of those.

“You cannot stop the protests,” the organizers retorted. “It is your role to protect us, it is ours to protect a country that is collapsing,” they added.

Smaller protests also popped up on key traffic routes and on bridges across the country, with dozens uring the prime minister to resign over his indictment on graft charges, which he denies, and handling of the COVID-19 coronavirus.