Protests, military chaos and strikes: Israel is sinking into chaos – because of controversial judicial reforms

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Hundreds of thousands of citizens across Israel have been demonstrating against controversial government plans for more than six months. Now the law has been passed. 64 of the 120 MEPs voted in favour. Blick gives an overview of what is happening.

The Knesset, Israel’s parliament, passed a controversial law on Monday. This allows the separation of powers to be largely abolished and removes the ability for the Supreme Court to review and overturn government decisions as “improper”. The law is part of a larger judicial reform.

Since the State of Israel does not have a constitution, but a collection of basic laws, the Supreme Court plays an important role in upholding the rule of law and human rights.

The reform of the judiciary was mainly demanded by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (73) and his right-wing government. According to her, the judiciary is too involved in political decisions. They want to strengthen the position of parliament and the prime minister.

But Netanyahu could also pursue private interests. Because: Several charges have been brought against him, including corruption. A weakening of the judiciary could protect him.

Negotiations between the government and the opposition failed. Parliament tried to find a compromise in a Sunday-Monday marathon session. Head of State Yitzchak Herzog (62) said: “There must be an agreement”. Opposition leader Jair Lapid, 59, wrote on Twitter: “I will do my utmost to build a broad consensus for a democratic and strong Israel.” But this attempt has now failed.

Opponents of the reform see the government’s plans as a threat to Israeli democracy. They fear that the new law will encourage corruption and the arbitrary firing or filling of important positions. Amit Becher, president of the Bar Association, announced before the vote that he would take legal action against the law if passed.

About half a million people across the country took part in protests against judicial reform on Saturday. There were also protests on Sunday and Monday. Opponents even camped outside the Knesset in Jerusalem. They warn against the introduction of a dictatorship.

But supporters also roamed the streets. Tens of thousands of them gathered in Tel Aviv on Sunday. They believe that the balance of power must be restored.

In addition, the umbrella organization of trade unions (Histadrut), which has about 800,000 members, wants to decide on Monday whether a general strike will be called. A coalition of the country’s 150 largest companies called for a strike on Monday.

Chaos also reigns in the army. Initially, about 4,000 reservists had stated that they would refuse voluntary military service if the law was passed. More than 1,000 Air Force reservists joined the protest on Friday. On Saturday, another ten thousand draft dodgers were added. According to the “Spiegel”, active soldiers then announced on Sunday that they wanted to refuse service.

Longtime Mossad boss Yossi Cohen (61), once one of Netanyahu’s confidants, then published a call for a halt to judicial reform. In addition, according to the newspaper, a letter has been published, which hundreds of soldiers have forced. They too warned against reform – to no avail.

Since Israel is involved in military conflicts, a military collapse could have serious consequences. Chief of Staff Herzi Halewi, 55, said Israel would then “could no longer exist as a country in this region”. After all, a weakened army would play into the hands of Israel’s enemies. (Mrs)

Source: Blick