Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, warned his cabinet on Sunday that similar threats had been made in Israel, following the failed assassination attempt against Donald Trump, the U.S. president, the day before.
Since taking office in November 2022, and implementing the promised judicial reforms, Netanyahu has been the subject of loud protests and threats. After the Hamas terror attacks on October 7, 20,23, the protests, backed by Biden’s administration, abated. However, they have returned along with an increased sense of political divide.
The Prime Minister’s Office provided a transcription and translation of Netanyahu’s statement to Cabinet:
We are seeing a flood in explicit threats of murder and violence, against the Prime Minster and his family members, as well as against public officials and ministers. They are not only flagrant crimes, but they also pose a direct threat to democracy. A few exceptions aside, there hasn’t been much done. This is the job of the Attorney General and State Attorney.
In essence, there hasn’t been anything tangible done to stop this flood. As we have seen under the previous government and even before that, there was a shameful legal matter on the opposite side. The arrest of a woman and her children on Shabbat. We all condemned a letter that was sent to Bennett, Prime Minister, threatening him with arrest and imprisonment.
It is impossible to compare this flood of explicit threats – criminal offenses – with the inaction of officials and their silence. No one has condemned the actions. We must also condemn. The senior figures don’t condemn or open their mouths. There is an attack on democracy, and there’s a normalization of political killing here. Everyone feels there is arbitrary enforcement.
We have seen how, in the case of much less serious offenses, such as those committed by right-wing elements or settlers against ultra-orthodox Ethiopians and Ethiopians, the full force is applied to the law. The strictest interpretation was given to the clauses invoked for the arrest of girls aged 14-15, even when the road blockage was minor compared with what we see today.
It did not happen slowly. This is not true. I do not accept it. The first time it happened was when we came back to power. The demonstrations began on Balfour Street, in Jerusalem. They continued with demonstrations in Petah Tikva against the Attorney-General at the time, and then the negotiations for reform.
The subject is always changing, but the intent is the same – to violate the rights. And the enforcement is never equal. This is not fair and the changes are not gradual, but rather abrupt. This is gaining strength because they’re constantly pushing the boundaries.
Everything is allowed. It is permissible to use grenades and torches to attack police. It is permissible to blockade highways using fire. It’s allowed, it’s permitted, and it’s permitted. Here, attacks on democracy have become normalized. Here, political murder is normalized. Next week, we will be dealing with this.
Many people said that the incident in the US was a sign. We can see the writing on the walls. We can see the writing on the wall. We see the writing on social networks. We can all see the writing. Ministers at the table of government say unanimously that this must be addressed genuinely and equally. As yet, it hasn’t happened.
A right-wing extremist assassinated Israeli Prime Minister Yitzchak Rabin in November 1994 after a peace rally.
