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At unusual counterprotest, right-wing demonstrators air grievances against Israel’s courts
JERUSALEM (JTA) — After three months of demonstrations dominated by detractors of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s judicial overhaul plan, supporters of the proposed reform took to the streets Monday, making their voice heard in Jerusalem and across Israel.
Gathered outside the Knesset, Israel’s parliament, thousands of pro-reform protesters, including settlers bused in from the West Bank, sought to back Netanyahu and Justice Minister Yariv Levin, even as the prime minister announced his intention to temporarily suspend the plan.
“We are trying to create counter-pressure to the demonstrations of the left,” said Yisrael Entman, who lives in the Kokhav HaShahar settlement and was accompanied by his wife and five children.
It was the first major demonstration by supporters of the Netanyahu government’s now-paused legislation to overhaul the country’s judiciary to sap the independence and power of the Supreme Court. Both proponents and critics of the legislation say it would benefit Israel’s right, which largely believes that the courts are out of step with mainstream sentiment. They also share the view that the dispute is not just about how Supreme Court justices are appointed but about what values will prevail in Israel.
“Israel cannot have a liberal approach devoid of Judaism,” Entman said. “If you destroy the Jewish character of Israel we have no justification for being here.”
He and others at the rally offered a laundry list of grievances against the court, including the way it has deployed the 1992 Basic Law on Human Freedom and Dignity, which the court has at times used to combat discrimination against minorities.
Thousands of Israeli right-wing protesters rally in support of Israeli government’s judicial overhaul bills out of the Israeli parliament, the Knesset, in Jerusalem on March 27, 2023. (Gili Yaari/Flash90)
Entman repeated the claim that the court had used the law to prevent the expulsion of African asylum seekers despite complaints from Israeli residents of south Tel Aviv. In fact, the court only limited the government’s ability to lock up asylum seekers in a Negev facility. It was Netanyahu who brokered a third-country expulsion agreement only to backtrack on it the next day.
Entman’s wife said bitterly that the court had “expelled settlers,” an apparent reference to court-ordered evacuation of Jewish settlers trespassing on private Palestinian property.
The massive demonstrations from right and left marked the culmination of a dramatic day in Israeli history, following Netanyahu’s firing of Defense Minister Yoav Galant after Galant urged a delay on the divisive judicial reform legislation, citing concerns about national security. The firing triggered an outpouring of public rage and ultimately led Netanyahu, for the first time since retaking office in December, to offer a compromise, promising to suspend legislation for several months and enter talks with opposition leaders.
The larger demonstrations were by critics of the government. But pro-reform organizers said more than 100,000 people attended demonstrations Monday across the country. In Jerusalem, more than a dozen cabinet ministers and Knesset members from coalition parties attended the rally, including Itamar Ben-Gvir, the head of the far-right Jewish Power party, and Bezalel Smotrich, leader of the Religious Zionism party. The men were reportedly among the last holdouts opposing the legislative pause, and each addressed the crowd.
The pro-government protests drew members of La Familia, a famously racist group of fans of the Beitar Jerusalem soccer club, alongside other right-wing activists. After the protest ended, several demonstrators made their way to Jerusalem’s Sacher Park where they clashed with police forces. In another incident in Jerusalem, protesters identifying as supporters of the judicial reform attacked an Arab taxi driver, injuring him and damaging his car.
A theme of the pro-government protest was that efforts to oppose the judicial reform legislation represent a form of election denial, a critique that government lawmakers had advanced, citing their majority after last November’s election. One man wore an Israeli flag as a cape and held up a sign that read, ”They are stealing the election.”
Yehiel Zadok, an 18-year-old from the Har Bracha settlement, who voted for Netanyahu’s Likud party, said, “The left lost the election and it’s time [for them] to admit it.” He argued that the battle over Supreme Court appointments is no more than an effort by the left to deny the right its ability to rule the country.
Zadok, who said he plans to study in a yeshiva before joining a military combat unit, offered a long list of grievances against the Supreme Court. “It harms settlement, ties the hands of the army and takes power that doesn’t belong to it.”
Israeli minister of national Security Itamar Ben-Gvir attends a rally of right-wing Israelis supporting the government’s planned judicial overhaul, in Jerusalem on March 27, 2023. (Erik Marmor/Flash90)
And while Zadok expressed support for Netanyahu’s decision to suspend the legislative drive and to enable dialogue, he warned that if the prime minister drops the plan altogether, he, for one, will abandon Likud in the next election and vote for Ben-Gvir’s Jewish Power party.
“Netanyahu needs to know that he is indebted to a huge number of people who voted for him and the reform,” said Zadok.
His friend, Yaakov Klein, who is also 18, said he was there not only to show support for the proposed judicial overhaul, but also for a greater cause.
“This is not just about the reform,” said Klein. “It is about control of the country, about whether the right can rule.” Like many other supporters of Netanyahu’s government, he feels sidelined in a society which, he claims, is dominated by the left.
“The left held on to centers of power like the army and the Histadrut,” he said, referring to Israel’s largest labor union, which joined a call for a general strike to protest the government on Monday. “Something has been exposed by the left’s protests: that when you take a little bit of cheese away from them, they burn down everything.
“The media,” Klein added, ”isn’t presenting the truth. It doesn’t show the other side.”
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Hezbollah Leader Leaves Open Possibility of New War With Israel
Lebanon’s Hezbollah Chief Naim Qassem gives a televised speech from an unknown location, July 30, 2025, in this screen grab from video. Photo: Al Manar TV/REUTERS TV/via REUTERS
The head of Lebanese terrorist group Hezbollah said on Friday it retained the right to respond to Israel‘s killing days ago of its top military commander and left open the possibility of a new conflict with Israel.
Naim Qassem spoke in a televised address as fears grew in Lebanon that Israel could escalate its bombardment of the country to compel Iran-backed Hezbollah to relinquish its arsenal across the country, which the group has repeatedly rejected.
Israel‘s killing of Hezbollah’s top military commander Haytham Ali Tabtabai in a strike on Beirut’s southern suburbs on Nov. 23 sharpened those worries.
Qassem said the group would “set the timing” for any retaliation, and said threats of a broader air campaign had no impact on the group – but that renewed war was possible.
“Do you expect a war later? It’s possible sometime. Yes, this possibility is there, and the possibility of no war is also there,” Qassem said.
Qassem did not explicitly say what the group’s position would be in a new war but said Lebanon should prepare a plan to confront Israel that relies on “its army and its people.”
Qassem also said he hoped Pope Leo’s upcoming visit to Lebanon “will play a role in bringing about peace and ending the [Israeli] aggression.”
Lebanon is under growing pressure from both Israel and the United States to more swiftly disarm Hezbollah and other militant groups across the country.
Moments after Qassem’s speech ended, Israeli military spokesperson Avichay Adraee said the Lebanese army’s efforts to seize Hezbollah weapons in the country’s south were “inadequate.”
“Hezbollah continues to manipulate them and work covertly to maintain its arsenal,” Adraee said in a post on X.
But Hezbollah has said it is unwilling to let go of its arms as long as Israel continues its strikes on Lebanese territory and its occupation of five points in the country’s south.
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Supermajority of US Jews See Mamdani as Anti-Israel and Antisemitic, Poll Finds
New York City mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani attends a press conference at the Unisphere in the Queens borough of New York City, US, Nov. 5, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Kylie Cooper
A strong majority of American Jews perceive New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani as both anti-Israel and antisemitic, according to a new poll from the Jewish People Policy Institute.
The “Voice of the Jewish People Index for November” reveals a stark and alarming divide between the incoming Mamdani administration and a significant portion of the Jewish population. According to the poll, a substantial two-thirds, 64 percent, of US Jews now perceive him as both anti-Israel and antisemitic, marking the highest percentage recorded for this metric since tracking began earlier this year. Only 9 percent of Jews perceive him as neither anti-Israel nor antisemitic.
Anxieties over Mamdani transcend political lines, with strong majorities of Jews across all but the “strong liberal” cohort believing he holds antisemitic and anti-Israel views. Mamdani’s victory has elicited a strong emotional response, with the dominant post-election sentiment reported being “concern” at 56 percent. In contrast, only 13 percent indicated feeling “hope” after his victory.
The survey of US Jewry paints a picture of a community increasingly on edge over anti-Israel hostility being legitimized in high-profile political office, with the Mamdani election serving as a critical tipping point. Crucially, this apprehension translates directly into fears for physical safety. An overwhelming 67 percent of respondents believe Mamdani’s elevation to office will lead to a direct decline in the security of New York’s Jewish residents, according to the poll.
The results come after Mamdani faced intense criticism from Jewish leaders and pro-Israel advocates for issuing a statement that appeared to legitimize a gathering of demonstrators who called for violence against Jews outside a prominent New York City synagogue last week. The protesters were harassing those attending an event being held by Nefesh B’nefesh, a Zionist organization that helps Jews immigrate to Israel, at Park East Synagogue in Manhattan.
The mayor-elect issued a statement that “discouraged” the extreme rhetoric used by the protesters but did not unequivocally condemn the harassment of Jews outside their own house of worship. Mamdani’s office notably also criticized the synagogue, with his team describing the event inside as a “violation of international law,” an allegation apparently referencing Israel’s settlement policies in the West Bank.
The Jewish People Policy Institute’s poll also reveals that a commanding 70 percent of US Jews self-identify as Zionist, reinforcing that support for Israel is a central, non-negotiable pillar of their identity. Conversely, only 3 percent of respondents identify as anti-Zionist, undercutting the notion that support for the Jewish state is not popular among the vast majority of the Jewish community. Furthermore, a decisive majority of 72 percent indicated that anti-Zionism is antisemitism, while a mere 11 percent indicated that anti-Zionism and antisemitism represent two separate belief systems.
On the broader security landscape, concern over rising antisemitism is nearly universal. While a majority (62 percent) expressed concern about antisemitism emanating from both the political right and left, the breakdown confirms a distinct partisan fear. Staunchly liberal Jews are more worried about the right, while staunchly conservative Jews are more worried about the left, though the anxiety itself is broad and deep.
In recent months, popular conservative pundits such as Tucker Carlson and Candace Owens have gone viral by launching antisemitic tirades and participating in Holocaust denialism, underscoring concern that anti-Jewish opinions are becoming mainstreamed among the American right. Likewise, anti-Israel protests have ravaged American universities in the two years following the Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2023, slaughters in Israel, highlighting the pervasiveness of anti-Jewish sentiment in left-leaning spaces such as academia.
The Big Apple has been ravaged by a surge in antisemitic incidents since Hamas’s Oct. 7, 2023, massacre across southern Israel. According to police data, Jews were targeted in the majority of hate crimes perpetrated in New York City last year. Meanwhile, pro-Hamas activists have held raucous — and sometimes violent — protests on the city’s college campuses, oftentimes causing Jewish students to fear for their safety.
Mamdani, a far-left democratic socialist and anti-Zionist, is an avid supporter of boycotting all Israeli-tied entities who has been widely accused of promoting antisemitic rhetoric. He has repeatedly accused Israel of “apartheid” and “genocide”; refused to recognize the country’s right to exist as a Jewish state; and refused to explicitly condemn the phrase “globalize the intifada,” which has been associated with calls for violence against Jews and Israelis worldwide.
Leading members of the Jewish community in New York have expressed alarm about Mamdani’s victory, fearing what may come in a city already experiencing a surge in antisemitic hate crimes.
A Sienna Research Institute released in early November poll revealed that a whopping 72 percent of Jewish New Yorkers believe that Mamdani will be “bad” for the city. A mere 18 percent hold a favorable view of Mamdani. Conversely, 67 percent view him unfavorably.
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Somaliland Partnership Could Be a ‘Game Changer’ for Israel in Countering Houthis, Experts Say
Smoke billows following an Israeli air strike in Sanaa, Yemen, Sept. 10, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah
Israel’s potential partnership with Somaliland could be a “game changer,” boosting the Jewish state’s ability to counter the Yemen-based Houthi terrorist group while offering strategic and geographic advantages amid shifting regional power dynamics, experts assessed.
The Institute for National Security Studies (INSS), a prominent Israeli think tank, released a new report arguing that Somaliland’s strategic position along the Red Sea, its closeness to Houthi-controlled areas in Yemen, and its willingness to work with pro-Western states could make it a key ally for Israel, benefiting both nations amid rising regional volatility.
Somaliland is an unrecognized state in the Horn of Africa, situated on the southern coast of the Gulf of Aden and bordered by Djibouti to the northwest, Ethiopia to the south and west, and Somalia to the east.
Unlike most other states in the region, Somaliland has relative security, regular elections, and a degree of political stability — qualities that could make it a valuable partner for international allies and a key player in regional cooperation.
“Somaliland’s significance lies in its geostrategic location and in its willingness — as a stable, moderate, and reliable state in a volatile region — to work closely with Western countries,” the INSS report said.
“Somaliland’s territory could serve as a forward base for multiple missions: intelligence monitoring of the Houthis and their armament efforts; logistical support for Yemen’s legitimate government in its war against them; and a platform for direct operations against the Houthis,” it continued.
The Iran-backed terrorist group has been waging an insurgency in Yemen for the past two decades in a bid to overthrow the Yemeni government.
Since 2014, the Houthis have controlled a significant portion of the country’s northern territory and areas along the Red Sea, which they captured in the midst of a civil war.
The Yemeni terrorist group began severely disrupting global trade with attacks on shipping in the Red Sea corridor following the Hamas-led invasion of and massacre across southern Israel on Oct.7, 2023, arguing their aggression was a show of support for Palestinians in Gaza.
Since the start of the Israel-Hamas war, Houthi terrorists in Yemen have regularly launched missiles and drone attacks targeting the Jewish state. However, the Iran-backed group has stopped firing in recent weeks, amid the current ceasefire in Gaza.
The Houthi rebels — whose slogan is “death to America, death to Israel, curse the Jews, and victory to Islam” — said they would target all ships heading to Israeli ports, even if they did not pass through the Red Sea.
According to the newly released study, Israel could gain multiple advantages from formal recognition of Somaliland, including a pro-Western partner with substantial mineral resources and a rare foothold of stability along the Red Sea.
Beyond targeting Israel, the Houthis have threatened — and in some cases attacked — US and British ships, prompting both Western allies to carry out multiple retaliatory strikes against Houthi targets in Yemen. The US and the Houthis reached a ceasefire in May that did not include Israel.
“Since the Gulf states, the United States, and Israel have all fought the Houthis in recent years without achieving a decisive outcome, Somaliland’s location — and the possibility of operating from its territory — could be a game changer,” the study noted.
In the wake of the Oct. 7 atrocities, the Houthis — designated as a terrorist organization by several countries including the US, Saudi Arabia, Malaysia, the United Arab Emirates, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and Israel — have launched over 200 missiles and 170 attack drones in repeated attacks against the Jewish state.
“Beyond its valuable location, no less important is the fact that Somaliland’s government is eager for broad cooperation with pro-Western states — a combination of willingness and capability,” the report said.
“Messages from Somaliland indicate that [the country] is prepared to maintain broad security relations with the US, including hosting an American base, and even with Israel,” it continued.
Amid rising tensions in the Red Sea and shifting regional dynamics, the report noted that informal contacts already exist between senior officials of the two states, paving the way for potentially significant formal relations.
At a time when Israel is facing a hostile campaign from some Western and regional actors, Somaliland’s largely pro-Israel public discourse suggests it could serve as a reliable and supportive partner in the region, according to INSS.