Women's March: Israelis rally against Trump in Tel Aviv

Women's March: Israelis rally against Trump in Tel Aviv
Despite Donald Trump's avid support of Israel, protests against the new President erupted outside the US embassy in Tel Aviv on his first day at the Oval Office.
2 min read
22 January, 2017
The Women's March sparked across seven continents on Saturday [Getty]
Hundreds of Israeli women protested against President Donald Trump outside the US embassy in Tel Aviv on Saturday, replicating worldwide demonstrations to mark his first full day in office, despite his avid support for the state of Israel.

The protesters waved placards reading "Hate is not great" and "Women's rights are human rights", according to an AFP journalist.

The "women's march" demonstration was one of more than 600 being held across seven continents worldwide on Trump's first day at the Oval Office after being sworn in as the 45th US president.

Protesters took to the streets to condemn his allegedly sexist stances following a series of disparaging comments he made about women and other communities, including Mexicans, Muslims and refugees during his presidential campaign.

Despite this, Trump has consistently championed the state of Israel throughout his campaign, and in a break with previous administrations, pledged to recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital and relocate the US embassy there from Tel Aviv. 

The controversial move would in essence recognise Israel's sole ownership of the disputed city.

The billionaire business tycoon-turned-president has also made several pro-Israel appointments to his team, and right-wing Israeli politicians have hailed his victory as a triumph for Israel.

Meanwhile, similar anti-woman sentiment is prevalent among Israel's right-wing community which has on several occasions targeted Palestinian females.  

The Israeli military's soon-to-be chief rabbi Eyol Shlomo Karim declared Israeli troops are allowed to "sexually assault" non-Jewish women during a conflict to boost their morale, before international condemnation forced him to backtrack on his ruling.

The religious edict, which targets Arab women, discussed the role of the Israeli army – frequently described as the most morale in the world – stating "it is permitted to breach the walls of modesty and satisfy the evil inclination by lying with attractive gentile women against their will, out of consideration for the difficulties faced by the soldiers and for overall success".

"By gentile woman [Eyal] means Arab Palestinian woman as the Israelis believe they are in a state of war with the Palestinians," Adnan Abu Rabei, head of the Popular Committee in support of Palestine inside the Green Line.

"Karim could apologise for days on end, but that would not eliminate his thought and belief," he added.