By Mucahit Aydemir
HEBRON, Palestine (AA) - Israeli human rights activists on Friday protested far-right policies of the Israeli government led by Premier Benjamin Netanyahu.
Demonstrating near the house of Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir in Kiryat Arba, an illegal Jewish settlement, in Hebron in the occupied West Bank, protesters held banners that read “National Terrorism Minister” and “Stand Together against occupation.”
With a banner reading “Hebron: Home to Ben Gvir, Apartheid and the Judicial Overhaul,” protesters draw attention to the fact that Hebron is one of the places most affected by Israel's illegal settlement policies.
Israeli human rights organizations Peace Now and Breaking the Silence also joined the protest.
The Israeli NGOs said that the main source of damage to democracy, caused by the controversial judicial regulations under Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's far-right coalition government, is the occupation of Palestine.
In a written statement about the protest, Peace Now said: “The judicial coup didn't emerge out of nowhere; it has its origins in the occupied West Bank. There can be no democracy with Jewish supremacy.”
Meanwhile, police did not allow protesters to approach the house of the minister and also arrested Alec Yefremov, director of activities at Peace Now.
Israeli police also guarded American-Israeli terrorist Baruch Goldstein’s grave, located at Meir Kahane Memorial Park during the protest. Goldstein had murdered 29 Muslim worshipers as they prayed in the Cave of the Patriarchs in 1994.
Ben-Gvir, known for his racist views, supported Goldstein after the massacre, calling him a "hero" and displaying his picture in his living room.
Estimates indicate about 700,000 Israeli settlers live in roughly 300 illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem.
Under international law, all Jewish settlements in the occupied territories are considered illegal.
* Writing by Seda Sevencan