Several thousand protesters gathered outside Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's official residence in Jerusalem on Saturday night in what has become a weekly demonstration calling for the Israeli leader to resign over the government's handling of the coronavirus pandemic.
Many brandished banners accusing Netanyahu of corruption.
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Scuffles between protesters and police erupted on Highway 1, which links Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, resulting in the arrest of 18 people. Several members of Knesset were among the protesters.
Police said in a statement that they arrested the protesters for disturbing public order.
Several hundred protesters continued to march toward the Prime Minister's Residence in the capital, where a large-scale rally took place later Saturday.
The protesters have been demonstrating for some five months, saying Netanyahu is unfit to lead while he is on trial for corruption charges and because of his handling of the coronavirus crisis. The pandemic has hit Israel's economy hard, and many of the protesters are students and young Israelis who have lost their jobs.
Many protesters held Israeli flags or black or pink flags, which the grassroots movements behind the demonstrations have adopted as symbols. With the weather cooling down ahead of the rainy winter season, turnout Saturday appeared to be lower than in recent weeks.
Smaller demonstrations also were reported in Tel Aviv, outside Netanyahu's vacation home in the upscale coastal town of Caesarea and locations across the country.
Netanyahu dismisses the protesters as "anarchists" and "leftists."
Netanyahu went on trial in May for bribery, fraud and breach of trust charges, which he vehemently denies.
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