Tel Aviv rally targets Netanyahu before Israeli election

Thousands rallied in Tel Aviv on Saturday against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, three days before a general election widely seen as a referendum on his leadership. The protest was organized by the October Council, a group founded by families of hostages and victims of the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack. The demonstration drew leaders of four main opposition parties, including former military chief Gadi Eisenkot, who is running neck and neck with Netanyahu. Organizers demand an independent state commission of inquiry into the security failures that led to the 2023 attack, which Netanyahu's government has refused to establish. Recent polls show neither bloc securing a parliamentary majority, with Eisenkot's alliance projected at 52 seats and Netanyahu's at 50 out of 120. Police arrested a suspect for assaulting the security team of former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, and opposition leaders criticized Netanyahu's suggestion of developing an alternate digital economy to counter international isolation.