Thousands of Protesters Against Judicial Reform March Toward Jerusalem

JERUSALEM (Sputnik) - Thousands of people approached Jerusalem on Saturday as part of a protest march against the controversial judicial reform, disrupting traffic on the highway between Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, a Sputnik correspondent reported.

The protest march started a few days ago, when a small group of activists set off from Tel Aviv toward Jerusalem.

Hundreds of cars belonging to protesters seeking to join the march have taken the right lane of the highway, leading to a huge traffic jam, even though traffic was reduced due to Shabbat, the correspondent said. Police and water cannon vehicles are on duty on the highway, the correspondent added.

Protest organizers estimate that about 20,000 people are taking part in the march heading toward the parliament building (Knesset), where one of the most controversial bills of the judicial reform may be finally adopted next week.

On Thursday, the Israeli parliament approved for second and third readings one of the key clauses of the reform, which limits the power of the Supreme Court to overturn government decisions by declaring them unreasonable. If the bill becomes law, the government will have more power to advertise its decisions and elect officials.