Protests against Netanyahu continue in Israel

Thousands of people have protested in Israel against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over alleged corruption and his handling of the coronavirus. 

“We have a failing government with a failing prime minister, deceitful, and a liar, and we cannot accept that,” Dani Danieli, a protester, said. 

Police deployed water cannon to disperse the crowds on Tuesday after they marched from Netanyahu’s residence to the Knesset, Israel’s parliament. 

A sharp rise in COVID-19 cases, along with reimposed coronavirus restrictions and high unemployment, have led to almost daily protests in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv.

“Everything is closed; everything is open. We don’t really know what’s going on with the corona, with the numbers, people don’t know if they have food to eat tomorrow,” Adi Arad, a protester, said. “We want answers, we want food, we want our money back, and it’s very sad.” 

According to data compiled by the Johns Hopkins Institute, Israel has reported at least 470 deaths and more than 61,000 coronavirus cases in a population of 9 million.

Public anger has been compounded by Netanyahu’s corruption trial.

He faces charges of bribery, fraud and breach of trust, which he denies. 

“He has a trial, and we believe that he is unable to perform his duties and that he has failed in managing the economic crisis and the health crisis, the corona crisis,” Tomer Kered, another protester, said.

This report was produced and edited by Al Jazeera NewsFeed’s Hassan Ghani.