30 July 2020; MEMO: Black Flag movement protesters in Israel have accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his Public Security Minister Amir Ohana of inciting against them, Arab48 reported yesterday.
Local news reported “attackers, dressed in black, threw stones, glass bottles and pepper-sprayed some of the protesters who had walked from Ohana’s home to the Ayalon Highway, briefly blocking parts of it. The group began beating the demonstrators suddenly and without any provocation.”
Haaretz added: “Carrying black flags and wearing hats and masks, the attackers did not identify themselves, with eyewitnesses saying they were right-wing activists who infiltrated the march.”
“I saw protesters being attacked violently. It was a horrible scene,” an eyewitness told the Wallah news site, adding that he called the police but they “did not come quickly”, giving the attackers time to flee.
“Ohana and Netanyahu, who incite violence, describe us as anarchists,” the protesters said. “This way, they fuel the fire… This caused violence.”
The site reported the Black Flag movement saying: “A criminal, who does not hesitate to incite against us, is leading the state of Israel. We only call for clean-handed leadership that brings all the nation together.”
Haaretz has reported senior police officers saying that Ohana had proposed suppressing the protests under several pretexts, including “the violation of coronavirus restrictions and annoying residents”.
The official had previously described the protests as “chaos”, Arab48 added.
