Demonstrations continued late Saturday following Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's announcement to put the judicial reform on hold until the summer in order to find a compromise on the highly-contested legislation.
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"I am taking a break for dialogue. I am giving it a real opportunity for real dialogue to reach a wide agreement," he said in a televised address. "I have decided to pause the advancement of the law in this Knesset session in order to give time for negotiations and agreement.
"When there's an opportunity to avoid a civil war, I – as prime minister – must give an opportunity to get to an agreement," he said.
Video: Israel Police
The announcement came amid nationwide unrest and mass strikes against the measure, and most recently, Netanyahu's decision to fire Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for defying the party line and publicly calling for the halt of the legislation.
Opponents of the judicial reform rejected the prime minister's declaration, saying they were unwilling to negotiate unless the legislation was stopped completely.
Opposition Leader Yair Lapid said, "If the legislation is indeed stopped, a real and complete stop, we are willing to go to the president of the state [Isaac Herzog] for talks... This is the biggest crisis in the history of the country. We have a responsibility to solve it together so that we can live here together."
Protest organizers too decried Netanyahu's address, saying it was "an admission of the government's intention to bring the dictatorship laws back to the table in the next parliamentary session, harming the economy and the security of the country."
Video: Free usage under Israeli copyright law (Section 27A)
They vowed to continue with the demonstrations: "As long as the legislation continues and is not shelved, we will be on the streets. This is just an attempt to weaken the protests in order to enact Netanyahu's dictatorship. Now is not the time to reduce the pressure, but to increase it."
However, Washington welcomed Netanyahu's announcement and urged Israel's political leaders to find a compromise.
Herzog too expressed support for the halt, saying "Stopping the legislation is the right thing. This is the time to start an honest, serious, and responsible conversation that will urgently calm the spirits and lower the flames."
The president phoned Netanyahu, Lapid, and Benny Gantz after the announcement to begin talks to reach a compromise agreement on judicial reform.
Meanwhile, protests that began early Monday continued into the night. Demonstrators in Jerusalem breached police barriers set up by around the prime minister's residence, while in Tel Aviv tens of thousands blocked the major Ayalon highway. Police deployed water cannons against the demonstrators in Jerusalem, with tear gas reportedly used on demonstrators in Tel Aviv.
Proponents of the judicial reform held their own demonstrations, which were joined by far-right groups, with an Arab cab driver assaulted while driving past.
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