Why the Anti-Netanyahu Protests in Israel Are Bound to Fail https://mosaicmagazine.com/picks/israel-zionism/2020/07/why-the-anti-netanyahu-protests-in-israel-are-bound-to-fail/

July 23, 2020 | Lahav Harkov
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Almost every day, for several weeks running, large demonstrations have taken place in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv against Prime Minister Netanyahu’s alleged corruption, and calling for his removal from office. While the prime minister’s trial on corruption-related charges has already begun, and anecdotal evidence suggests that his support may be dwindling, Lahav Harkov argues that the protests are unlikely to accomplish anything:

Netanyahu is not going to respond positively to a protest calling for his ouster, especially on grounds that he believes are trumped-up. He still hopes to prove in court that his actions were within the bounds of the law, [and] he successfully built a coalition after the last election, so why should he go home just because a few thousand angry people say so?

Beyond that obvious reasoning, it seems like these protests don’t really seek to convince anyone who isn’t already against Netanyahu. As Netanyahu himself pointed out in a recent tweet, the “Black Flag” protest movement behind the anti-corruption demonstrations in recent months has suspicious ties to the former prime minister Ehud Barak, who is one of Netanyahu’s most vocal opponents. [Some] protesters waved Palestinian flags or the red flags of “antifa,” [a congeries of] loosely tied anarchist groups, . . . making it easy for the right and Netanyahu to dismiss the demonstrations.

It’s as if the organizers don’t realize that Israelis who supported Netanyahu or the [parties] that help him build his coalitions tend to be pretty conservative, and radical left-wing messages and connections will only make it impossible for them to convince anyone on the right of their cause.

Read more on Jerusalem Post: https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/how-not-to-storm-fortress-balfour-analysis-635947