More thatn 30,000 protest Jewish nationalism in Tel Aviv

Independent, UK=  More than 30,000 people took to the streets of Tel Aviv  to voice their opposition to Israel’s controversial new “nation state” law.

The Arab, Druze and Jewish crowds waved Palestinian flags and shouted and sang in both Arabic and Hebrew in Rabin Square on Saturday night against what has been dubbed an “apartheid law” by Arab Israeli politicians.

“I feel ashamed that after 70 years [since the founding of Israel] I have to accentuate my nationalism instead of being generous toward all those who live here,” said Gila Zamir, 58, a Jewish Israeli from the Arab-Jewish city Haifa.

The legislation passed last month by the Knesset is designed to strengthen Israel’s identity as the “national home of the Jewish people”.

It has been widely condemned as discriminatory towards the country’s 20 per cent Arab population by critics at home and abroad, however, sparking several protests.