Anti-government protests

Tal Mitnick. (Oren Ziv)

‘I refuse to take part in a revenge war’: Israel jails teen for opposing army draft

Tal Mitnick is the first Israeli conscientious objector to be imprisoned since Oct. 7. He explains why the current war has only reaffirmed his convictions.

By Oren Ziv December 28, 2023

Israeli Supreme Court President Esther Hayut and Supreme Court Justices at a court hearing on petitions against the government's "Reasonableness Bill," at the Supreme Court in Jerusalem, September 12, 2023. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Why Israel’s top court is greenlighting a civil rights crackdown

After a year of fierce battles over the judicial coup, Israel’s Supreme Court seems totally subservient to the state’s policies since Oct. 7. What's changed?

By Eyal Lurie-Pardes December 12, 2023

Protesters argue with worshippers affiliated with the Rosh Yehudi organization over gender-segregated prayer on Yom Kippur in Dizengoff Square, Tel Aviv, September 25, 2023. (Oren Ziv)

A clash over gender segregation reveals the blindness of Israel’s protest leaders

On the religionization of public space, as with the occupation, the leaders of the anti-government protests are out of step with many taking to the streets.

By Oren Ziv September 29, 2023

Latest

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu leads a government conference at the Prime Minister's Office in Jerusalem, September 27, 2023. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)

Netanyahu and Raisi are more alike than they’ll admit

Smearing anti-gov't protesters as 'joining forces with the PLO and Iran' is just one of the things making Bibi a grotesque reflection of the Iranian president.

By Orly Noy September 28, 2023

U.S. President Joe Biden visits the Israeli President's Residence in Jerusalem, July 14, 2022. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Biden’s message to Bibi: Normalization is more important than democracy

At a meeting on the UN sidelines, many anticipated Biden would pressure Netanyahu to halt his anti-democratic agenda. But the U.S. has other priorities.

By Naim Mousa September 27, 2023

All 15 justices of Israel's High Court sit for a hearing on petitions against the government's amendment to Basic Law: The Judiciary, Jerusalem, September 12, 2023. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)

Will Israel’s High Court defy the far-right government?

As the Court hears petitions against the first judicial overhaul bill, Palestinian human rights lawyer Hassan Jabareen assesses the state of play.

By Ghousoon Bisharat September 15, 2023

Edo Konrad. (Oren Ziv)

My last letter: Speak the words we were taught to fear

+972’s outgoing editor-in-chief reflects on the changes to the site and on the ground during his tenure, and calls for courage to confront reality head-on.

By Edo Konrad September 15, 2023

Palestinian politician Hanan Ashrawi, seen in her office in the West Bank city of Ramallah. January 31, 2012. (Miriam Alster/Flash90)

‘I told Arafat: Israel will promise you an inch and not give you a millimeter’

Reflecting on the Oslo Accords 30 years later, veteran politician Hanan Ashrawi recounts her arguments with PLO leaders during the negotiations, and explains why Israel's political crisis is opening cracks in the occupation.

By Meron Rapoport September 13, 2023

Eight of the conscientious objectors who signed the "Youth Against Dictatorship" refusal letter. (Oren Ziv)

‘Youth Against Dictatorship’: Meet Israel’s new class of conscientious objectors

Eight new draft refusers speak about the occupation, the anti-judicial reform protests, and conscientious objection as a tool of protest.

By Oren Ziv September 5, 2023

Israeli teenagers sign their names onto a letter declaring their refusal to enlist in the army and serve a dictatorship in Israel or the occupied Palestinian territories, Gimnasia Herzliya, Tel Aviv, September 3, 2023. (Oren Ziv)

A lesson on Israeli ‘democracy’ from an 18-year-old draft refuser

Previous generations of Israelis closed their eyes to the oppression of Palestinians, Mizrahim, and asylum seekers. Our generation can be different.

By Yahli Agai September 5, 2023

Israeli protesters during an anti-government demonstration, Tel Aviv, July 20, 2023. (Oren Ziv)

‘We’re shattered and fed up’: The youth on the frontlines of Israel’s protests

Before this year, many of these teens and twentysomethings had never been to a protest. Now they’re taking to the streets not just to fight the Israeli government, but to change the old order.

By Oren Ziv August 24, 2023

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks with the media during a security tour of the Palmachim Air Force base, on October 27, 2019. (Marc iIrael Sellem/POOL)

Bibi is unmoved by air force refusers — the occupation doesn’t need them

The prime minister's indifference to threats by over 1,000 reserve pilots shows that when it comes to Israel’s security, he’s been bluffing the whole time.

By Meron Rapoport August 22, 2023

Israeli soldiers from the Paratroopers Brigade are sworn into the army, Ammunition Hill, Jerusalem, November 11, 2021. (Arie Leib Abrams/Flash90)

How mass army refusal is forcing Israelis to rethink their red lines

The dissent of thousands of reserve soldiers offers a rare opening for Israelis to question the army’s primary function: maintaining the occupation.

By Ariel Bernstein August 13, 2023