Israel's Supreme Court on Monday (1) rejected the judicial reform that the country's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wanted to push forward a decision that further undermines the government at a time when the country is waging a war against Hamas sets pressure.
Netanyahu's judicial reform which sparked a wave of protests including in the armed forces in 2023, led to the dismissal of the defense minister and led to military officials sending open letters threatening to stop serving was aimed at limiting the power of the Supreme Court and give the government greater influence in appointing judges.
1 of 3 Netanyahu's judicial reform triggered a wave of protests in Israel in 2023 Photo: Getty Images/BBC Netanyahu's judicial reform triggered a wave of protests in Israel in 2023 Photo: Getty Images/BBC
The Supreme Court's decision to annul the reform passed in parliament comes after months of internal unrest and as Israel wages war in the Gaza Strip after suffering Hamas attacks on October 7 that killed 1,400 people.
Since then, around 22,000 Palestinians mostly women and children have died in Israeli attacks in Gaza, according to the Hamasaffiliated local health ministry.
An analysis published in the US newspaper The New York Times said that the Israeli Supreme Court's decision puts the country on the path to a “constitutional crisis.”
According to the newspaper, the decision “heralds a possible confrontation between the higher judicial authority and the ruling coalition and could fundamentally reshape Israeli democracy by pitting the government's power against that of the court.”
The decision resonated throughout Israel's political world.
Israel's Justice Minister Yariv Levin said Supreme Court justices had assumed all powers “which in a democracy are divided between the three branches of government.”
Levin, chief architect of judicial reform, said the ruling “will not stop us.” But he said the government would “continue to act with restraint and responsibility” during the war.
Other government members said they hope the Supreme Court's decision does not undermine national unity at a time when Israeli troops are fighting in Gaza.
For the Minister of Culture and Sports, Miki Zohar, “it would have been better if this decision had been announced after these difficult days, if only to prevent the return of a divisive discourse”.
Netanyahu's Likud party said: “The court's decision contradicts the people's desire for unity, especially in times of war.”
2 of 3 Benjamin Netanyahu ruled Israel six times at different times in the last three decades Photo: Portal/BBC Benjamin Netanyahu ruled Israel six times at different times in the last three decades Photo: Portal/BBC
The opposition celebrated the Supreme Court's announcement.
Opposition leader Yair Lapid said the decision “ends a difficult year of conflict that divided us from within and led to the worst disaster in our history.”
He says: “The source of Israel’s power, the basis of Israel’s strength, is the fact that we are a Jewish, democratic, liberal and lawabiding state.”
3 of 3 The Israeli government says the Supreme Court decision has no impact on the fight against Hamas in Gaza Photo: Telegram/BBC The Israeli government says the Supreme Court decision has no impact on the fight against Hamas in Have Gaza Photo: Telegram/BBC
The Movement for Quality Government in Israel, one of the main opponents of Netanyahu's reforms, also praised the “historic ruling” and said the decision was “a tremendous public victory for those who seek democracy.”
“A government and ministers who tried to free themselves from the rule of law were told that there are judges in Jerusalem, that there is democracy, that there is a separation of powers,” the movement stated.
Netanyahu's government is considered the most rightwing in Israel's history and faces strong resistance within the country.
In July, the government passed a law now known as the “Adequacy Act.”
The law stripped the Supreme Court and lower courts in Israel of the power to overturn government decisions deemed “extremely irrational.”
The law sparked widespread protests at the time. Hundreds of thousands of demonstrators took to the streets demanding the reform be repealed and the prime minister's ouster.
Hundreds of military reservists including Air Force pilots have threatened to refuse to report for duty, which the government says could harm Israel's military capabilities.
The Supreme Court's decision is a further setback for Netanyahu, who has already faced criticism in Israel for failing to prevent the October 7 Hamas attack and for failing to rescue all Israeli hostages taken to Gaza.