The war had no influence on his decision. Israel's Supreme Court on Monday, January 1, invalidated a key provision of Benjamin Netanyahu's government's highly controversial judicial reform, which proposed depriving the judiciary of the right to decide on the “reasonableness” of Israeli executive decisions decide Parliament. The architect of this reform and number two in the government, Justice Minister Yariv Levin, accused the court on Telegram of “usurping all powers.” “In fact, with this decision, the judges hold in their hands all the powers that, in a democratic regime, are distributed in a balanced manner between the three branches of government [exécutif, législatif et judiciaire] », he castigated, not without criticizing the publication of this judgment “in the middle of the war, which runs counter to the unity necessary for the success of our fighters at the front”.
The measure, rejected by eight of the fifteen judges, had sparked one of the largest protest movements in Israel's history, which has since been eclipsed by the Israeli army's war in the Gaza Strip in retaliation for the bloody October 7 attack by Hamas on Hebrew territory. The Supreme Court's decision brings to the fore an issue that has deeply divided society and led to the most massive protests in the history of this country of 9 million people.
For seven months, from January to the summer, polls showed hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets every week, in line with the majority of public opinion. However, the movement's power did not cause Benjamin Netanyahu to back down. After pretending to negotiate, the Prime Minister finally supported the reform, which was passed in a first phase in July 2023.
An institutional gap filled
This was essentially a change to a Basic Law – a set of rules that serves as Israel's constitution – by a simple majority, stripping the Supreme Court of the power to overturn a government decision on grounds deemed “unreasonable.” to cancel. This power was used to prevent appointments in the executive branch or to invalidate administrative decisions, on ethical grounds or because of the risk of corruption or conflict of interest. It was notably used to remove Arié Déri, the leader of the Shass Party, a powerful ally in Benyamin Netanyahu's coalition, from a ministerial post in February 2023, despite his pledge not to seek a portfolio.
You still have 70% of this article left to read. The rest is reserved for subscribers.