Israel Protests Over New Supreme Court Bill
Israeli protesters blocked major highways and faced off with police on Tuesday as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s hard-right coalition pressed ahead with a contested bill that seeks curbs on the power of the Supreme Court.
Report says crowds of flag-waving protesters stopped morning traffic in major intersections and on highways nationwide. Some lay down on roads, while others threw flares.
Police on horseback deployed among hundreds of demonstrators in Israel’s business hub, Tel Aviv. At the entrance to Jerusalem, officers used a water cannon to disperse some protesters and dragged others away by force.
At least 42 people were arrested, police said, and further protests were planned throughout including at the main international Ben Gurion airport.
Meanwhile, the drive by Netanyahu’s nationalist-religious coalition to change the justice system has sparked unprecedented protests, stirred concern for Israel’s democratic health among Western allies, and bruised the economy.
New bill
Report say the new bill won the first of three required votes to be written into law late on Monday to the cries of ‘for shame’ by opposition lawmakers.
If passed as it is, would curb the Supreme Court’s power to quash decisions made by the government, ministers, and elected officials by ruling them unreasonable.
Critics argue that this judicial oversight helps prevent corruption and abuses of power.
Proponents say the change will facilitate effective governance by curbing court intervention, arguing that judges have other legal means to exercise oversight.
However, some members of Netanyahu’s Likud party have said that the bill will be watered down before it is brought to a final vote which they hope to wrap up before the Knesset breaks for the summer on July 30.
The head of the Knesset Constitution Law and Justice Committee, Simcha Rothman which is drafting the bill, said “I’m saying this explicitly: I am not convinced that any significant changes are to be expected.”
Divisions over the government’s judicial campaign have cut deep through Israeli society. Washington has urged Netanyahu to come to broad agreements over any justice reforms that it says should keep Israel’s courts independent.
Netanyahu has so far not indicated he would again pause legislation and has also played down the economic fallout from the campaign, which has spooked investors and weakened the shekel by almost 8% since January.
The head of Israel’s largest labour union urged Netanyahu not to allow what he described as extremism. “Where are you taking the state of Israel? What legacy will you leave behind? End this crazy chaos,” Histadrut chair Arnon Bar-David said.
REUTERS/Christopher Ojilere
