Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected the idea of having early elections on Saturday, as thousands of Israelis rallied in Tel Aviv to oppose the government.
Netanyahu’s popularity has plummeted in opinion polls since Hamas’ October 7 strike, which began the disastrous war in Gaza.
Anti-government protests, which shook the country for much of 2023, have largely ceased amid the conflict. Still, activists came to the streets of Tel Aviv on Saturday night, clamoring for new elections, which are not planned until 2026.
According to reports, the crowd was significantly smaller than the previous year’s large protests, totaling only a few thousand.
“I’d like to say to the government that you’ve had your time, you ruined everything that you can ruin. Now is the time for the people to correct all the things, all the bad things that you’ve done”, claimed one protestor, his head covered in an Israeli flag.
At a press conference, Netanyahu was challenged about proposals from his own ruling Likud party to schedule early elections as soon as the Gaza war ended.
“The last thing we need right now is elections and dealing with elections since it will immediately divide us”, he went on to say.
“We need unity right now”, he added.
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