Netanyahu rejects calls for elections amid protests in Tel Aviv

(Patria) - Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Saturday rejected the idea of holding early elections, as thousands of Israelis gathered in Tel Aviv for anti-government protests, Reuters reported.

Netanyahu's popularity has been falling in polls since Hamas's attack on October 7. Anti-government protests that shook the country for most of 2023 had largely subsided during the war. Nevertheless, demonstrators took to the streets of Tel Aviv again on Saturday evening, calling for new elections, which are not scheduled until 2026.

The crowd was much smaller than last year's mass protests, only a few thousand people, according to local media.

Netanyahu was asked at a press briefing about calls from his ruling Likud party to hold early elections once the war in Gaza ends.

"The last thing we need right now is elections and dealing with elections, because that will immediately divide us," he said. "We need unity right now," he added.