Israeli police evacuate Ben-Gvir from building besieged by protesters

By Zain Khalil

JERUSALEM (AA) - Israeli police evacuated far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir from a building in West Jerusalem on Wednesday that was surrounded by protesters, including families of hostages in Gaza.

Israel’s Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper reported that hundreds of protesters gathered in Jerusalem near the building where Ben-Gvir was accompanied by Heritage Minister Amichai Eliyahu and extremist rabbi Bentzi Gopstein.

The police evacuated Ben-Gvir from the scene after its officers secured him.

They prevented the protesters from reaching Ben-Gvir after they surrounded his car, chanting slogans of disapproval against him including “Shame on you.”

The police used crowd dispersal means including wastewater, according to the daily.

Israeli Army Radio said the incident occurred on King George Street in front of an art museum, which the demonstrators besieged while Ben-Gvir was inside.

Earlier, the Israeli Public Broadcasting Authority reported that protesters attempted to storm the major synagogue in West Jerusalem after hearing of Ben-Gvir's presence there, before being confronted by the police.

Ben-Gvir is the leader of the far-right Jewish Power party and is considered one of the most outspoken opponents of reaching a deal with the Palestinian group Hamas that would lead to ending the Israel-Hamas war and releasing prisoners from both sides.

Protests also erupted around Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's official residence in West Jerusalem on Wednesday evening, accompanied by clashes with the police, after the Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, released a video of an Israeli hostage condemning Netanyahu and his government's “negligence” towards hostages in Gaza and calling on them to work for their release, according to Israel’s Channel 13.

The demonstrators demanded an immediate deal to release the detainees held in Gaza and called for early elections and the resignation of Netanyahu's government, which they accused of hindering reaching an agreement.

In a statement, Jon Polin and Rachel Goldberg, the parents of hostage Hersh Goldberg, 24, who appeared in the Al-Qassam Brigades video, said: "We are relieved to see him alive, but we are concerned about his health and the health of all the other hostages held by Hamas.”

“We call on all parties to reach a deal,” they added.

Jon and Rachel addressed Hamas and Israel, the parties to the negotiations regarding the hostages and cease-fire, as well as mediators Qatar, Egypt and the US, saying: “Show courage, seize the opportunity, and agree on a deal to end the suffering of all the hostages.”

Israel’s Haaretz daily reported that the protesters, including Hersh's friends, gathered near Netanyahu's residence on Gaza Street and set fire to tires. Clashes with the police occurred, and at least two protesters were arrested.

It added that in addition to the protests in Jerusalem, thousands demonstrated near the Ministry of Defense headquarters in the Kirya area of Tel Aviv, demanding an end to the war, the dismissal of the government and the release of hostages.

Israel has launched a brutal offensive on the Gaza Strip since a cross-border attack by the Palestinian group Hamas on Oct. 7, 2023, which killed nearly 1,200 people.

More than 34,200 Palestinians have since been killed and 77,200 others injured amid a tight siege imposed by Israel, which left the entire population, especially residents of northern Gaza, on the verge of starvation.

More than six months into the Israeli war, vast swathes of Gaza lay in ruins, pushing 85% of the enclave’s population into internal displacement amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water and medicine, according to the UN.

*Writing by Rania Abu Shamala