
MK Gideon Sa'ar (National Unity) on Tuesday morning responded to the clashes which took place on Yom Kippur (the Day of Atonement) in Tel Aviv, slamming opposition leader MK Yair Lapid, alongside those in the coalition.
"'Jews know how to hate,' [Former] Prime Minister Ariel Sharon told me more than once," Sa'ar wrote on X, the platform which used to be Twitter. He continued that during Sharon's life, "he merited large amounts of hate from all sectors of the Israeli people. Each sector in its turn. This sentence echoes in my ears from last night, following the ugly events in Tel Aviv on Yom Kippur. Following those, there were ugly responses by [Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu, [National Security Minister Itamar] Ben Gvir, [Yesh Atid leader MK Yair] Lapid (yes, you too, Lapid!). Each of them attempted to add another toothpick (or a bit of gas) to the bonfire, instead of trying to extinguish it."
"What 'leaders' fuel a civil war at the conclusion of Yom Kippur? There are things which must not be disagreed on. We need to respect rulings of our courts. There is room for everyone in our public spaces. And yes, that includes the Jewish heritage shared by all of us."
"Those who curse at and shame religious Jews are not protecting the character of Tel Aviv as a liberal and free city. To the contrary: They are not removing partitions, they are raising walls between the parts of our people."
Turning to the left-wing protesters, Sa'ar said, "To my friends who are fighting shoulder-to-shoulder with me, to protect the democratic regime in Israel, I say: Do not be enticed by attempts to turn the protest into a battle against religion, Israel's traditions, or our right to the land. All of those will fail. There will not be a civil war."