Mass protests in Israel again despite postponement of judicial reform

Thousands of people demonstrated again in Israel despite the temporary halt of the controversial judicial reform. The main gathering of the nationwide protests took place in Tel Aviv for the 13th consecutive Saturday. “The government does not want an agreement, but only wants to buy time to carry out the judicial coup,” said the organizers. It is the duty of the people to protect democracy. “This is the most critical time since the founding of the state.” Therefore, actions were planned at about 150 locations in the country.

According to media reports, the protesters blocked several streets in Tel Aviv, Jerusalem and other cities. They waved Israeli flags. Signs read “Democracy is stronger than this government” or “Arrest Netanyahu”. In addition, several photos were shown that would show Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in an orange prison uniform.

After massive protests and a general strike, the head of government postponed the highly controversial bill for several weeks on Monday to create “space for dialogue”. Since Tuesday, several talks have taken place between the coalition and the opposition. However, politicians from the opposition parties repeatedly questioned Netanyahu’s seriousness in trying to reach a compromise.

With the judicial reform, Netanyahu’s coalition wants to limit the influence of the Supreme Court and increase the government’s position of power. She accuses the court of excessive interference in political decisions. In the future, for example, parliament must be able to overturn decisions by the Supreme Court with a simple majority. Critics see the separation of powers in danger and warn of a state crisis if the reform is implemented in this way. (sda/dpa)