Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant called on the government to freeze a contentious judicial overhaul, urging the public to stop massive street demonstrations and to begin repairing what he called a widening rift in society that’s endangering the country’s security.
(Bloomberg) — Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant called on the government to freeze a contentious judicial overhaul, urging the public to stop massive street demonstrations and to begin repairing what he called a widening rift in society that’s endangering the country’s security.
“Today, publicly, for the sake of Israel’s security and the security of our children, I say we must stop the judicial overhaul,” Gallant said in a televised address made while Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was on a trip to London.
The widening rift in society caused by the government’s program to change the legal system is “a real threat” at a time when Israel faces “unprecedented security challenges,” he added.
On Thursday, Israel’s parliament approved the first part of the overhaul that reduced the authority of the legal system to declare a prime minister incapacitated, a change that Netanyahu then said cleared the way for him to fully engage in pushing forward a government program that will reduce the power of the courts.
This was despite a high court ruling that stipulated that Netanyahu, who faces charges of corruption he has denied, couldn’t take an active part in changing the legal system.
Opponents of the plan say it undermines the checks and balances of Israel’s democracy and endangers the economy. Netanyahu and his coalition say that the legal system has taken on too much power and needs to be curbed.
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