War in Israel: Thousands of Israelis in the streets against the government

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has no intention of going to early elections, he announced as thousands of Israelis gathered in Tel Aviv in an anti-government protest.

Netanyahu's popularity has declined in opinion polls since the attack launched by Hamas on Israel on October 7, which sparked the war in the Gaza Strip.

Anti-government protests that rocked the country throughout most of 2023 have largely subsided during the war. However, protesters took to the streets of Tel Aviv again this evening demanding new elections, scheduled for 2026.

The crowd was much smaller than last year's massive protests, which numbered in the thousands, according to local media.

“I would like to say to the government that you had your chance, you destroyed what you could destroy. Now is the time for the people to fix everything, all the bad things you did,” said one protester, his head wrapped in an Israeli flag.

Netanyahu was asked in a press conference about calls within the ruling Likud Party to hold early elections with the end of the war in the Gaza Strip.

“The last thing we need now is elections and being preoccupied with them because they will divide us immediately,” he said. “We need unity now,” he noted.