Israel approves law to curb protests on lockdown

Israel's parliament on Wednesday passed a law that would allow government to curtail public protests during country's nationwide coronavirus lockdown, a measure that drew fierce opposition a day earlier.

Knesset approved bill 46-38 during a late-night session that stretched into morning hours.

law allows government to declare a special week-long state of emergency if coronavirus spres out of control.

If such a state is declared, government would be able to limit participation in assemblies, including protests, to one kilometer (0.6 miles) from a person's home, effectively putting a halt to large weekly demonstrations outside Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's residence.

That measure is widely seen as a bid to stop protests against Netanyahu, which have drawn thousands each week outside his official residence for past several months.

y are largest sustained demonstrations against Netanyahu in nearly a dece.

Netanyahu has said protests must end due to public health concerns.

But protesters say he is using crisis as a pretext to muzzle m.

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