Your browser does not support this video format.
JERUSALEM, Jul 22 Tens of thousands of protesters against the Israeli government's judicial reform are heading to the Parliament (Knesset) building in Jerusalem as part of a «march for democracy», reports the correspondent.
The column of activists, which gathered on the outskirts of the city on Saturday morning, started from the String Bridge (Harp of David) and moved to the Knesset to protest against the adoption of the controversial judicial reform bill.
Roads at the entrance to Jerusalem are blocked, police are on duty around. Israeli media report that such a mass protest march, which started a few days ago from Tel Aviv, is an unprecedented event for the country.
Protest organizers announced on Saturday demonstrations in 150 places across Israel. A mass rally of many thousands will also take place in the center of Tel Aviv on Kaplan Street. Protests against judicial reform have been held across the country for 29 weeks in a row.
Protest activity in the country has increased significantly amid a deadlock between the ruling coalition and the opposition in the search for a compromise on the reform of the legal system, which, in the opinion of its opponents, will undermine the democratic nature of the Jewish state.
On Wednesday, the Israeli Parliament's Legislative Commission approved amendments to an earlier first reading bill on the «reasonableness factor,» which limits the ability of the Supreme Court to control executive decisions. This step symbolizes the practical beginning of the judicial reform carried out unilaterally by the government of Benjamin Netanyahu.