Israel PM pledges action after mass protests

[FarCenter]

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pledged "real" economic change on Sunday after massive nationwide protests that broke Israeli records and prompted questions about the future of the social movement.

Speaking to his cabinet after an estimated 450,000 people turned out for demonstrations across the country seeking lower living costs, Netanyahu said his government was determined to carry out effective reforms.

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He pointed to his decision to form a committee headed by respected economist Manuel Trachtenberg to examine the demands of the six-week-old protest movement, which has shown unprecedented staying power, tapping into deep frustrations.

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Commentators hailed the demonstrations, but also described them as a turning point for the movement, questioning where it would go now.

Gideon Levy, writing in the left-leaning Haaretz newspaper described the demonstrations as "historic", writing that "the last of the complacent decided that they, too, had to show up."

"One day, the students will learn that on this momentous evening a civil society was born in Israel," he wrote.

http://www.france24.com/en/20110904-israel-pm-pledges-action-after-mass-protests