Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced on Monday that he will delay his government’s plans to overhaul the country’s judicial system amid an unprecedented general strike and massive protests that brought airport departures, universities, and shopping centers to a halt.
This follows months of mass mobilizations across Israel against the judicial proposals, which would weaken the independence of the country’s high court and create the conditions for unchecked majoritarian rule.
Despite the delay, this moment is a crisis for Israel’s democracy. It’s a crisis initiated by these specific proposals, but one built on decades of right-wing policies promulgated by Netanyahu. Netanyahu and his allies are pursuing a shock doctrine that amounts to crippling the Israeli governance system and radical changes to the way the occupation of the West Bank is administered. Even if one part of these plans is delayed, the government’s ideology remains unchanged.
Israel’s allies have expressed concern about moving forward with the overhaul plan, with US President Joe Biden calling for a compromise.
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The 3 big questions facing Israel after Netanyahu delays judicial overhaul
Protesters gather outside the Israeli Consulate to rally against Prime Minister Netanyahu on March 27, 2023 in New York. Alexi Rosenfeld/Getty ImagesBenjamin Netanyahu has taken such extreme measures as prime minister of Israel that he is undermining the myths that have shielded Israel for generations.
It’s more difficult than ever to argue that Israel is the only democracy in the Middle East and that its relationship with the US is unwavering, as he pursues illiberal legislation that would eliminate the independence of the judiciary.
Read Article >Netanyahu finally went too far
A scene from a protest in Tel Aviv on Monday. Ilia Yefimovich/Picture alliance/Getty ImagesThroughout the day on Monday, Israel was consumed by protest.
Massive crowds gathered outside the Knesset, Israel’s Parliament, and in the streets of its major cities. The economy ground to a halt amid a general strike; everything from airports to Israeli embassies abroad to the country’s 226 McDonald’s franchises shut down. It is the largest protest movement in the entirety of Israeli history, one that has been taking to the streets for the past several months but reached new heights after Netanyahu fired Defense Minister Yoav Gallant on Sunday.
Read Article >How Israel’s protesters brought a temporary halt to Netanyahu’s judicial assault
Protesters hold up a sign as thousands of Israelis attend a rally against Israeli Government’s judicial overhaul plan on March 27, 2023, in Jerusalem, Israel. Amir Levy/Getty ImagesMass protests broke out in Israel Sunday night after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu fired his defense minister for opposing his months-long plan to overhaul the judiciary. Monday, he agreed to postpone — but not abandon — the change.
Though the plan is widely unpopular and has driven months of protests, tensions peaked in the lead-up to an initial vote on the overhaul plan that was slated for Wednesday, but will now take place after Parliament resumes session next month. As a condition for agreeing to the delay, National Security Minister Itmar Ben Gvir required that he be allowed to preside over a new national guard to combat crime.
Read Article >Why Israel’s new far-right government has triggered massive protests
A protester walks past a banner depicting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at sunset outside the Knesset in Jerusalem on February 20, 2023. Ahmad Gharabli/AFP via Getty ImagesHundreds of thousands of Israeli protesters who have been demonstrating against the extreme-right government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu since January have put a judicial overhaul plan on pause.
On Sunday more than 600,000 protesters turned out in defiance of his ultranationalist, illiberal government. This builds on two months of mass mobilizations across Israel that have been squarely focused on the Netanyahu government’s set of judiciary overhauls, which would weaken the independence of the country’s high court and create the conditions for unchecked majoritarian rule.
Read Article >If you love Israel, you must protest this government, says the former prime minister
Former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert attends a demonstration against the Israeli government’s controversial judicial overhaul bill, in Tel Aviv on March 1, 2023. Jack Guez/AFP via Getty ImagesIt’s significant when a former prime minister joins the protests against a sitting government.
Ehud Olmert served as prime minister of Israel from 2006 to 2008. In recent weeks, he’s joined the hundreds of thousands of Israeli protesters out on the streets revolting against the illiberal government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Read Article >Israel’s new right-wing government is even more extreme than protests would have you think
Israeli security forces and left-wing protesters face off during a rally against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s new hard-right government in Tel Aviv on January 14, 2023. Jack Guez/AFP via Getty ImagesNationalist, exclusionist, and far, far right: The most extreme Israeli government in the nation’s history has taken shape.
The policies of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s newly sworn-in governing coalition brought out 80,000 protesters over the weekend in Tel Aviv. The protesters were largely focused on the government’s proposals to overhaul the judicial system, which could weaken the country’s democracy and separation of powers. But the effects of the policies on the 1.6 million Palestinian citizens of Israel and the 5.2 million Palestinians living in the occupied territories will be catastrophic, building upon years of policies that Israeli human rights organizations say constitute crimes against humanity.
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