Thousands rally in support of Israel’s divisive judicial overhaul
Planned legislation to strip the Supreme Court of its powers has fueled weeks of mass protests by those who oppose it.
Tens of thousands of right-wing Israelis have taken to the streets in Jerusalem to show their support for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government’s controversial legislation that would strip the country’s highest court of much of its power.
Israelis remain polarized over the planned legislation the government says is needed to rein in a judiciary that wields too much power but critics say removes crucial scrutiny from those in power.
Crowds of people could be seen outside Israel’s parliament, many carrying Israel’s blue and white national flag, which has also been used as a symbol of protests against the proposed legislation.
Some stamped on a carpet with the faces of the president of Israel’s Supreme Court and former attorney general. Many protesters carried pins and held flags supporting far-right Israeli political parties.
“The nation demands judicial reform,” the crowd chanted.
Netanyahu delayed the review last month after 16 weeks of mass anti-government protests intensified, bringing Jerusalem and Tel Aviv to a standstill and threatening to cripple the economy.
Thursday’s protests were a rare show of public support for the plan.
“To all my friends sitting here, look how much power we have,” far-right lawmaker and Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich told the crowd. “They have the media and they have tycoons who will fund the protests, but we have the nation.”
“We will fix what needs to be fixed,” Smotrich said.
“The nation demands legal reform,” the crowd chanted in response. Israeli media estimates that about 80,000 people gathered in Jerusalem for Thursday’s rally, many from other parts of the country.
The plan would give Netanyahu, who is on trial on corruption charges, and his far-right and ultra-Orthodox coalition partners the final say in appointing the country’s judges.
It would also give parliament, which is controlled by its allies, the power to overturn Supreme Court decisions and limit the court’s ability to review laws.
Opponents say the plan is a power grab that would weaken Israeli democracy and its system of checks and balances, concentrating authority in the hands of the prime minister and his allies.
The protests have drawn support from secular and liberal Israelis, pilots and officers in elite military reserve units, high-tech business leaders and former officials.
They also say Netanyahu has a conflict of interest in trying to reshape the nation’s justice system at a time when he is on trial.
Many in Israeli society, including President Isaac Herzog, whose role is largely ceremonial, have called on opposing sides to compromise and have asked the coalition to water down its initial proposals.
However, the mood at the protest was defiant.
“They don’t agree that we won,” Israel’s far-right security minister Itamar Ben Gvir told the crowd.
“We won’t break, we won’t give in,” he said.