Hundreds of Israelis took part in a rally outside the President’s Residence in Jerusalem on erev Shabbos Parshas Eikev to show backing for President Reuven Rivlin.

The president has recently come under criticism due to his comments in which he stated “my people have turned to terror”, referring to the arson attack in the PA (Palestinian Authority) village of Duma which he assumes was carried out by Jews, despite the fact police have not ruled out the assailants coming from within the PA.

The president came outside to greet his supporters, stating that in the past differences of opinion did not lead to such actions. Mr. Rivlin thanked his supporters for participating.

Last week a citizen used Facebook to enlist support for a lawsuit against Mr. Rivlin for his words. Yossi Davidov, a Likud activist, has since issued a public apology, explaining he did say some things out of the “anger of the moment” which he regrets, but he is still demanding a public apology from the president over his controversial statements.

(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)