Sara Netanyahu’s Salon Scare, Smotrich’s Extremism, Spark Scandal in Strife-stricken Israel
Sara Netanyahu, the wife of Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, was extracted from a hair salon in Tel Aviv on Wednesday after protesters surrounded the building, chanting, “The country is burning and Sara is getting a haircut!” and “Shame!”
The PM’s wife was escorted out of the salon by security personnel, who whisked her away in a black vehicle.
The incident occurred as demonstrators across the country participated in a “national disruption day” to protest against the Netanyahu government’s plan to overhaul Israel’s judiciary and weaken the Supreme Court.
Israeli police used stun grenades and water cannons to disperse protesters who blocked a major highway in Tel Aviv, and scuffles broke out between protesters and police near the Prime Minister’s Residence in Jerusalem. This marked the first time in weeks of anti-government protests that significant violence had been reported.
Prime Minister Netanyahu criticized anti-government protesters in a late-night address on Wednesday. He compared them to a violent mob that, in response to a shooting attack Sunday that killed two Israelis in the West Bank town of Huwara, tore through the town, resulting in one Palestinian death, more than 100 injuries, and the destruction of dozens of homes and businesses. Netanyahu said the freedom to demonstrate was not a license to drag the country into anarchy.
Earlier on Wednesday, US State Department spokesman Ned Price called on Netanyahu to publicly reject his finance minister’s call for Huwara to be “erased,” calling the comments “repugnant,” “disgusting” and “irresponsible.” Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich later walked back his comments, saying he didn’t mean to “wipe out” the entire town, but only to take tough action against terrorists and their supporters.
Netanyahu made no mention in his address to the nation of his finance minister’s statements.
The American government’s statement came amid growing concern both in Israel and among the Jewish state’s allies abroad that the country’s democratic institutions are being eroded by the Netanyahu government, which critics say is increasingly authoritarian and corrupt.
The prime minister and his wife have for more than a decade faced allegations of corruption, including accusations that they accepted lavish gifts from wealthy businessmen in exchange for political favors. Both have denied any wrongdoing, but police investigations have resulted in the prime minister being indicted on charges of fraud, breach of trust, and accepting bribes. His trial in the Jerusalem District Court opened in May 2020.
