Israeli Politician Faces Backlash After Comparing Anti-Government Protesters to Hamas

Likud Member of Knesset (MK) Nissim Vaturi, who serves as deputy speaker of the Knesset, sparked outrage after suggesting that anti-government protesters are akin to a branch of the Hamas terrorist group. Speaking to Kol Brama radio station, Vaturi stated, “There are a few branches of Hamas — the fighting branch of wicked terrorists who murder children, and the branch of the protests.”

The controversial comments came after a night of clashes between police and protesters in Jerusalem. Demonstrators demanding early elections marched towards the prime minister’s residence, breaking through barricades.

Vaturi's remarks sparks outrage 

Vaturi's remarks drew swift condemnation from both opposition and coalition lawmakers. Culture and Sport Minister Miki Zohar, also from Likud, criticized the statement without naming Vaturi directly, saying such comments “deepen the enormous rift that exists in our nation.” Education Minister Yoav Kisch, another Likud member, echoed this sentiment, calling the comparison unfounded and urging, “We must remember that we are brothers.”

Liked should have fired him, says Yair Lapid 

Opposition figures were equally critical. Yesh Atid MK Karine Elharrar described Vaturi’s comment as “dangerous and irresponsible.” National Unity chairman Benny Gantz wrote on X that “the deputy speaker of the Knesset proved again this morning that he has no understanding or respect for democracy”. Israeli oppositon leader Yair Lapid said that “The demonstrators are IDF soldiers and officers, they are the Israeli economy, they are teachers and doctors, they are Zionism in its embodiment”. 

According to a report from Times of Israel, Lapid went on to add that “Nissim Vaturi, on the other hand, is a man full of hatred whose inflammatory words are used by Israel’s enemies in a lawsuit in The Hague. Likud should have fired him this morning from the position of deputy speaker of the Knesset”. 

In an attempt to clarify his stance, Vaturi took to X, claiming that his comments had been taken out of context. He wrote that while protests “harm our national resilience,” the actions of Hamas “are not fit to be compared to any protest or political act.” The incident has intensified the already heated political climate, highlighting the deep divisions within Israeli society and the government’s struggle to address the ongoing protests.