sweep_shot
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Israel keeps on committing blatant transgressions by building illegal settlements in occupied West Bank.
May God's wrath be upon these thieves and murderers.
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Former PM Benjamin Netanyahu and far right allies win Israeli election
- Thread starter Markhor
- Start date
Israel keeps on committing blatant transgressions by building illegal settlements in occupied West Bank.
May God's wrath be upon these thieves and murderers.
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Netanyahus victory is being celebrated worldwide by the so called anti-woke.
May Allah swt protect the Palestinian people from this modern day Firaun.
May Allah swt protect the Palestinian people from this modern day Firaun.
daytrader
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Thousands of Israelis protest against Netanyahu’s new government
Crowds rally against Netanyahu’s plans to expand settlements in the occupied West Bank and weaken Israel’s Supreme Court.
Thousands of Israelis have taken to the streets to protest plans by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s new government that they say threaten democracy and freedoms.
The protesters gathered in the city of Tel Aviv on Saturday, days after the most right-wing and religiously conservative government in the country’s 74-year history was sworn in. It plans sweeping reforms, from expanding illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank to weakening the power of the judiciary.
...
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023...lis-protest-against-netanyahus-new-government
Crowds rally against Netanyahu’s plans to expand settlements in the occupied West Bank and weaken Israel’s Supreme Court.
Thousands of Israelis have taken to the streets to protest plans by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s new government that they say threaten democracy and freedoms.
The protesters gathered in the city of Tel Aviv on Saturday, days after the most right-wing and religiously conservative government in the country’s 74-year history was sworn in. It plans sweeping reforms, from expanding illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank to weakening the power of the judiciary.
...
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023...lis-protest-against-netanyahus-new-government
SalimBhai
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Bad times ahead for Palestinians. The right wing government will take everything.
James
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Yes, clear what Israel’s endgame is here.
Nikhil_cric
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Nobody, including fellow Arab/Muslim countries, is going to do a damn thing about this. I think Palestinians need to resign themselves to the fact that their Arab brethren would rather have trade relations with Israel rather than stand up for them.
For anybody who believes realpolitik is dead, this is a prime example of why it never was dead. World is going from Corona to food crisis to inflation/recession and nation states see this as an opportunity to expand their power while everyone is looking the other way.
Moral of the story: Look out for your own national interest at all times.
For anybody who believes realpolitik is dead, this is a prime example of why it never was dead. World is going from Corona to food crisis to inflation/recession and nation states see this as an opportunity to expand their power while everyone is looking the other way.
Moral of the story: Look out for your own national interest at all times.
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More than 80,000 Israeli protesters have rallied in Tel Aviv against plans by the new right-wing coalition government to overhaul the judiciary.
The reforms would make it easier for parliament to overturn Supreme Court rulings, among other things.
Protesters described Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's proposed changes as an attack on democratic rule.
It follows the instalment of the most religious and hardline government in Israeli history.
Rallies were also held outside the prime minister's residence in Jerusalem and in the northern city of Haifa, local media reported.
One group of protesters clashed with police while attempting to block a major road, Ayalon highway, in Tel Aviv.
Critics say the reforms would cripple judicial independence, foster corruption, set back minority rights and deprive Israel's court system of credibility.
Banners referred to the new coalition led by Mr Netanyahu as a government of shame.
BBC
The reforms would make it easier for parliament to overturn Supreme Court rulings, among other things.
Protesters described Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's proposed changes as an attack on democratic rule.
It follows the instalment of the most religious and hardline government in Israeli history.
Rallies were also held outside the prime minister's residence in Jerusalem and in the northern city of Haifa, local media reported.
One group of protesters clashed with police while attempting to block a major road, Ayalon highway, in Tel Aviv.
Critics say the reforms would cripple judicial independence, foster corruption, set back minority rights and deprive Israel's court system of credibility.
Banners referred to the new coalition led by Mr Netanyahu as a government of shame.
BBC
SalimBhai
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Not good news for Palestinians
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An estimated 110,000 people have packed the streets of Tel Aviv, in one of Israel's biggest anti-government protests in the past decade.
The rallies spread across the city centre as banners were hoisted calling for an end to the ruling coalition, which is the most right-wing and religious-nationalist in Israel's history.
"This is a dangerous government," said Yaara Ben Geraluf, a teacher from Jaffa, a western suburb on the coast.
"This government will not be any good for women, for LGBTQ, for the impoverished people… and of course for Palestinians," she told the BBC.
Organisers say they are trying to stop a "coup" taking place against the system of government.
It is the second week running that mass protests have taken place in four different cities.
Opposition leader Yair Lapid addressed the crowds in Tel Aviv, saying "people who love the country" came to defend its democracy and its courts.
"We won't give up until we win," he said.
The rallies spread across the city centre as banners were hoisted calling for an end to the ruling coalition, which is the most right-wing and religious-nationalist in Israel's history.
"This is a dangerous government," said Yaara Ben Geraluf, a teacher from Jaffa, a western suburb on the coast.
"This government will not be any good for women, for LGBTQ, for the impoverished people… and of course for Palestinians," she told the BBC.
Organisers say they are trying to stop a "coup" taking place against the system of government.
It is the second week running that mass protests have taken place in four different cities.
Opposition leader Yair Lapid addressed the crowds in Tel Aviv, saying "people who love the country" came to defend its democracy and its courts.
"We won't give up until we win," he said.
daytrader
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Benjamin Netanyahu accuses protesters of ‘trampling democracy’
PM vows to press ahead with legislation to restrict judicial powers as upwards of 100,000 protesters take to streets
The Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has accused protesters of “trampling democracy”, vowing that his far-right coalition will move ahead with controversial legislation to restrict the power of the judiciary.
Upwards of 100,000 people gathered outside the Knesset in Jerusalem on Monday in protest against an initial plenum vote on bills that would give politicians control over appointments to Israel’s supreme court, and limit its ability to overturn laws. Protesters blocked major roads across the country, and prevented some politicians from leaving their homes.
In a meeting with parliamentary members of his conservative Likud party, Netanyahu condemned the movement’s leadership for “threatening us with civil war and blood in the streets”.
“The people made their electoral choices and the representatives of the people will exercise their right to vote here in the Knesset. That’s called democracy,” the prime minister said. “Today there will be a vote, and tomorrow I hope the path will be opened to dialogue.”
A preliminary vote passed 63-47 after a vitriolic debate that dragged on past midnight. During the session, opposition lawmakers chanted, “shame” and wrapped themselves in the Israeli flag — and some were ejected from the hall.
...
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2...ahu-accuses-protesters-of-trampling-democracy
PM vows to press ahead with legislation to restrict judicial powers as upwards of 100,000 protesters take to streets
The Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has accused protesters of “trampling democracy”, vowing that his far-right coalition will move ahead with controversial legislation to restrict the power of the judiciary.
Upwards of 100,000 people gathered outside the Knesset in Jerusalem on Monday in protest against an initial plenum vote on bills that would give politicians control over appointments to Israel’s supreme court, and limit its ability to overturn laws. Protesters blocked major roads across the country, and prevented some politicians from leaving their homes.
In a meeting with parliamentary members of his conservative Likud party, Netanyahu condemned the movement’s leadership for “threatening us with civil war and blood in the streets”.
“The people made their electoral choices and the representatives of the people will exercise their right to vote here in the Knesset. That’s called democracy,” the prime minister said. “Today there will be a vote, and tomorrow I hope the path will be opened to dialogue.”
A preliminary vote passed 63-47 after a vitriolic debate that dragged on past midnight. During the session, opposition lawmakers chanted, “shame” and wrapped themselves in the Israeli flag — and some were ejected from the hall.
...
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2...ahu-accuses-protesters-of-trampling-democracy
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Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his allies on Thursday denounced protesters as “anarchists” after they massed outside a Tel Aviv salon where his wife was getting her hair done — a chaotic end to a day of demonstrations against the government’s plan to overhaul the judiciary.
Sara Netanyahu has long been a polarizing figure in Israel, and the incident late Wednesday in a posh neighborhood in Tel Aviv reflected Israel’s emotionally charged divide over the overhaul, seen by opponents as an existential threat to the country. Demonstrators outside the salon chanted, “shame, shame” — but did not try to force their way inside. Hundreds of police were sent to the scene and eventually escorted her into a limousine.
In a post on Instagram, Sara Netanyahu thanked the police for helping her and thanked the public for what she said was an outpouring of support.
“Yesterday’s incident could have ended with murder,” she said. She called on opposition leaders to condemn “the violence, anarchy and incitement.”
Meanwhile, Netanyahu and his political partners showed no signs of easing up on a push to pass a series of bills to overhaul Israel’s judiciary. These moves have further inflamed an already deeply riven country and drawn the largest protests in over a decade.
Protest organizers held a small demonstration outside Netanyahu’s office on Thursday, with some 200 people, most of them army veterans, joining former Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni a day after their self-proclaimed “day of disruption” turned violent when police used a heavy hand against participants at a Tel Aviv rally.
Thursday’s demonstrations in Jerusalem are expected to include speeches by former government ministers and senior security officials. Former top economists, including two former Bank of Israel heads and a Nobel Prize laureate, were set to speak at a conference in Tel Aviv about the economic fallout from the overhaul.
Justice Minister Yariv Levin, one of the architects of the judicial overhaul, said Wednesday night that despite the mounting public outcry, Netanyahu’s government “will not stop the legislation.”
The proposed bills would give politicians and parliament control over judicial appointments, the power to overrule the Supreme Court and the ability to pass laws impervious to judicial review.
Critics of the plan include a growing number of former military brass, academics, economists and business leaders. They say the changes will erode the country’s delicate system of checks and balances and erode democratic institutions. Netanyahu and his ultranationalist and ultra-Orthodox allies say the changes are necessary to rein in the power of unelected judges.
The battle over the judiciary overhaul comes as Netanyahu’s trial for charges of accepting bribes, fraud and breach of trust drags on. The longtime leader has dismissed the charges against him as part of a “witch hunt” by a biased law-enforcement, judiciary and press.
On Wednesday, tens of thousands of Israelis took part in demonstrations across the country against what they saw as an attempt by Netanyahu’s new government to weaken the Supreme Court and concentrate power in the hands of the ruling coalition.
Protesters blocked highways and major intersections in Tel Aviv and massed outside the prime minister’s official residence in Jerusalem. For the first time since protests began two months ago, the scene on the streets turned violent after Public Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, a hardline nationalist settler, ordered police to take tougher action against demonstrators he claimed were “anarchists.” At least 11 people were hospitalized and police arrested dozens.
Wednesday’s events reached a crescendo outside a ritzy north Tel Aviv salon where the prime minister’s wife was getting her hair done.
Moshe Butbul, a hair stylist from the salon, told the Israeli news site Ynet that another client posted a selfie with Sara Netanyahu. He claimed that “within minutes thousands arrived,” though the actual number of protesters may have been smaller, judging by videos posted online.
Reporters at the scene said the crowd kept its distance and did not attempt to break into the salon. Ben-Gvir then dispatched large numbers of security forces to the salon, saying on Twitter that he had ordered police to “save her life” from the demonstrators “besieging” the salon.
Hundreds of police officers, including mounted police, broke a path through the demonstration to let an SUV approach. Protected by a phalanx of police, Sara Netanyahu was escorted out of the salon and into the vehicle, which drove off under heavy police escort.
“The anarchy has to stop,” Netanyahu said in a Facebook post accompanied by a picture of him embracing his wife. “This can lead to the loss of life.”
Netanyahu’s allies came to Sara Netanyahu’s defense Thursday morning.
Galit Distel Atbaryan, Israel’s public diplomacy minister, called the incident “three hours of terror in which one woman was besieged by an incited mob.” Another Likud lawmaker wrote on Twitter that the prime minister’s wife “was rescued from a lynch” by a mob of “anarchists.”
Yair Golan, a former general and one-time Meretz party lawmaker, told Kan radio that “with all due respect, Sara Netanyahu is a political figure.”
Referring to what critics consider her outsized political influence in the prime minister’s office, Golan alleged that “she is involved in decision making on a national level and approves senior appointments left and right.”
The Netanyahus have been criticized for being out of touch with regular Israelis and living a lavish lifestyle at taxpayer expense. Last week, an Israeli parliamentary committee approved new funding for Netanyahu and his family.
AP
Sara Netanyahu has long been a polarizing figure in Israel, and the incident late Wednesday in a posh neighborhood in Tel Aviv reflected Israel’s emotionally charged divide over the overhaul, seen by opponents as an existential threat to the country. Demonstrators outside the salon chanted, “shame, shame” — but did not try to force their way inside. Hundreds of police were sent to the scene and eventually escorted her into a limousine.
In a post on Instagram, Sara Netanyahu thanked the police for helping her and thanked the public for what she said was an outpouring of support.
“Yesterday’s incident could have ended with murder,” she said. She called on opposition leaders to condemn “the violence, anarchy and incitement.”
Meanwhile, Netanyahu and his political partners showed no signs of easing up on a push to pass a series of bills to overhaul Israel’s judiciary. These moves have further inflamed an already deeply riven country and drawn the largest protests in over a decade.
Protest organizers held a small demonstration outside Netanyahu’s office on Thursday, with some 200 people, most of them army veterans, joining former Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni a day after their self-proclaimed “day of disruption” turned violent when police used a heavy hand against participants at a Tel Aviv rally.
Thursday’s demonstrations in Jerusalem are expected to include speeches by former government ministers and senior security officials. Former top economists, including two former Bank of Israel heads and a Nobel Prize laureate, were set to speak at a conference in Tel Aviv about the economic fallout from the overhaul.
Justice Minister Yariv Levin, one of the architects of the judicial overhaul, said Wednesday night that despite the mounting public outcry, Netanyahu’s government “will not stop the legislation.”
The proposed bills would give politicians and parliament control over judicial appointments, the power to overrule the Supreme Court and the ability to pass laws impervious to judicial review.
Critics of the plan include a growing number of former military brass, academics, economists and business leaders. They say the changes will erode the country’s delicate system of checks and balances and erode democratic institutions. Netanyahu and his ultranationalist and ultra-Orthodox allies say the changes are necessary to rein in the power of unelected judges.
The battle over the judiciary overhaul comes as Netanyahu’s trial for charges of accepting bribes, fraud and breach of trust drags on. The longtime leader has dismissed the charges against him as part of a “witch hunt” by a biased law-enforcement, judiciary and press.
On Wednesday, tens of thousands of Israelis took part in demonstrations across the country against what they saw as an attempt by Netanyahu’s new government to weaken the Supreme Court and concentrate power in the hands of the ruling coalition.
Protesters blocked highways and major intersections in Tel Aviv and massed outside the prime minister’s official residence in Jerusalem. For the first time since protests began two months ago, the scene on the streets turned violent after Public Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, a hardline nationalist settler, ordered police to take tougher action against demonstrators he claimed were “anarchists.” At least 11 people were hospitalized and police arrested dozens.
Wednesday’s events reached a crescendo outside a ritzy north Tel Aviv salon where the prime minister’s wife was getting her hair done.
Moshe Butbul, a hair stylist from the salon, told the Israeli news site Ynet that another client posted a selfie with Sara Netanyahu. He claimed that “within minutes thousands arrived,” though the actual number of protesters may have been smaller, judging by videos posted online.
Reporters at the scene said the crowd kept its distance and did not attempt to break into the salon. Ben-Gvir then dispatched large numbers of security forces to the salon, saying on Twitter that he had ordered police to “save her life” from the demonstrators “besieging” the salon.
Hundreds of police officers, including mounted police, broke a path through the demonstration to let an SUV approach. Protected by a phalanx of police, Sara Netanyahu was escorted out of the salon and into the vehicle, which drove off under heavy police escort.
“The anarchy has to stop,” Netanyahu said in a Facebook post accompanied by a picture of him embracing his wife. “This can lead to the loss of life.”
Netanyahu’s allies came to Sara Netanyahu’s defense Thursday morning.
Galit Distel Atbaryan, Israel’s public diplomacy minister, called the incident “three hours of terror in which one woman was besieged by an incited mob.” Another Likud lawmaker wrote on Twitter that the prime minister’s wife “was rescued from a lynch” by a mob of “anarchists.”
Yair Golan, a former general and one-time Meretz party lawmaker, told Kan radio that “with all due respect, Sara Netanyahu is a political figure.”
Referring to what critics consider her outsized political influence in the prime minister’s office, Golan alleged that “she is involved in decision making on a national level and approves senior appointments left and right.”
The Netanyahus have been criticized for being out of touch with regular Israelis and living a lavish lifestyle at taxpayer expense. Last week, an Israeli parliamentary committee approved new funding for Netanyahu and his family.
AP
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Having visited Tehran in a bid to loosen deadlocked talks on renewing its 2015 nuclear deal with world powers, International Atomic Energy Agency chairman Raphael Grossi on Saturday said "any military attack on nuclear facilities is outlawed".
He was responding to a reporter's question about threats by Israel and the United States to attack Iran's nuclear facilities if they deem diplomacy meant to deny it the bomb to be at a dead end. Tehran says its nuclear programme is peaceful.
"Rafael Grossi is a worthy person who made an unworthy remark," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told his cabinet in televised remarks on Sunday.
"Outside what law? Is it permissible for Iran, which openly calls for our destruction, to organise the tools of slaughter for our destruction? Are we forbidden from defending ourselves? We are obviously permitted to do this."
The IAEA said on Saturday Grossi had received sweeping assurances from Iran that it will assist a long-stalled investigation into uranium particles found at undeclared sites and re-install removed monitoring equipment.
He was responding to a reporter's question about threats by Israel and the United States to attack Iran's nuclear facilities if they deem diplomacy meant to deny it the bomb to be at a dead end. Tehran says its nuclear programme is peaceful.
"Rafael Grossi is a worthy person who made an unworthy remark," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told his cabinet in televised remarks on Sunday.
"Outside what law? Is it permissible for Iran, which openly calls for our destruction, to organise the tools of slaughter for our destruction? Are we forbidden from defending ourselves? We are obviously permitted to do this."
The IAEA said on Saturday Grossi had received sweeping assurances from Iran that it will assist a long-stalled investigation into uranium particles found at undeclared sites and re-install removed monitoring equipment.
daytrader
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No White House visit for Israel's Netanyahu as US concern rises
Most new Israeli leaders had visited the United States or met the president by this point in their premierships
WASHINGTON:
Eleven weeks into his third stint as Israel's prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu has yet to be received at the White House, signaling apparent U.S. unhappiness over the policies of his right-wing government.
Most new Israeli leaders had visited the United States or met the president by this point in their premierships, according to a Reuters review of official visits going back to the late 1970s. Only two out of 13 previous prime ministers heading a new government waited longer.
The White House declined to confirm Netanyahu has yet to be invited. A State Department spokesperson referred Reuters to the Israeli government for information about the prime minister's travel plans.
Israel’s embassy in Washington declined to comment.
"The message they clearly want to send is: If you pursue objectionable policies, there's no entitlement to the Oval Office sit-down,” said David Makovsky, a former senior adviser to the Special Envoy for Israeli-Palestinian Negotiations, now at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.
...
https://tribune.com.pk/story/2406400/no-white-house-visit-for-israels-netanyahu-as-us-concern-rises
Most new Israeli leaders had visited the United States or met the president by this point in their premierships
WASHINGTON:
Eleven weeks into his third stint as Israel's prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu has yet to be received at the White House, signaling apparent U.S. unhappiness over the policies of his right-wing government.
Most new Israeli leaders had visited the United States or met the president by this point in their premierships, according to a Reuters review of official visits going back to the late 1970s. Only two out of 13 previous prime ministers heading a new government waited longer.
The White House declined to confirm Netanyahu has yet to be invited. A State Department spokesperson referred Reuters to the Israeli government for information about the prime minister's travel plans.
Israel’s embassy in Washington declined to comment.
"The message they clearly want to send is: If you pursue objectionable policies, there's no entitlement to the Oval Office sit-down,” said David Makovsky, a former senior adviser to the Special Envoy for Israeli-Palestinian Negotiations, now at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.
...
https://tribune.com.pk/story/2406400/no-white-house-visit-for-israels-netanyahu-as-us-concern-rises
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Israel's parliament has passed a new law that would prevent a prime minister from being declared unfit to hold office by the attorney general.
It is considered to be in the interests of the incumbent, Benjamin Netanyahu, who is on trial on corruption charges.
The law is the part of his right-wing government's contentious plan to limit the powers of the judiciary, which has led to months of protests.
Hours after the vote opponents began what they called a "day of paralysis".
Thousands of demonstrators gathered in central Tel Aviv and blocked several major roads. A large Israeli flag and a banner with the declaration of independence were also draped over a wall in the Old City of Jerusalem.
A rally is planned in the evening in the ultra-Orthodox Tel Aviv suburb of Bnei Brak, where there is widespread support for the government.
Ahead of the event, protesters set up chairs and tables, surrounded by Israeli flags, and invited members of the community to meet them for reconciliation talks about the planned law changes. There were heated conversations.
Photos emerged on social media of one of the protest leaders, a doctor, lying bloodied on the ground after being hit by a car. But the organisers later said that it had been an accident, not a deliberate act.
BBC
It is considered to be in the interests of the incumbent, Benjamin Netanyahu, who is on trial on corruption charges.
The law is the part of his right-wing government's contentious plan to limit the powers of the judiciary, which has led to months of protests.
Hours after the vote opponents began what they called a "day of paralysis".
Thousands of demonstrators gathered in central Tel Aviv and blocked several major roads. A large Israeli flag and a banner with the declaration of independence were also draped over a wall in the Old City of Jerusalem.
A rally is planned in the evening in the ultra-Orthodox Tel Aviv suburb of Bnei Brak, where there is widespread support for the government.
Ahead of the event, protesters set up chairs and tables, surrounded by Israeli flags, and invited members of the community to meet them for reconciliation talks about the planned law changes. There were heated conversations.
Photos emerged on social media of one of the protest leaders, a doctor, lying bloodied on the ground after being hit by a car. But the organisers later said that it had been an accident, not a deliberate act.
BBC
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Mass Israel protests after Netanyahu fires defence minister
Tens of thousands of people have taken to the streets across Israel after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu fired his defence minister.
Yoav Gallant had spoken out against controversial plans to overhaul the justice system.
In Jerusalem, police and soldiers used water cannon against demonstrators near Mr Netanyahu's house.
Early on Monday morning, Israel's President Isaac Herzog called on the government to halt the reforms.
"For the sake of the unity of the people of Israel, for the sake of responsibility, I call on you to stop the legislative process immediately," he said on Twitter, adding that "the eyes of all the people of Israel are on you".
The US also said it was deeply concerned about the developments and called for a compromise.
A week of disruption had already been planned over the new law.
The reforms include plans that would give the government decisive control over the committee which appoints judges.
They would also make it harder for courts to remove a leader deemed unfit for office, which has angered many who consider it in the interests of the incumbent, Benjamin Netanyahu, who faces an ongoing trial for corruption.
Mr Netanyahu says the reforms are designed to stop the courts over-reaching their powers and that they were voted for by the public at the last election.
After protesting outside Mr Netanyahu's home, the demonstrators - many flying Israeli flags and banging pots and pans - then evaded police forces to arrive at Israel's parliament, the Knesset.
One government employee told the BBC that she felt Mr Netanyahu "crossed every line we have as a democratic country".
"We're defending the last bit of democracy we have and I can't go to sleep this way. I can't do anything until we stop this craziness", she said.
...
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-65083776
Tens of thousands of people have taken to the streets across Israel after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu fired his defence minister.
Yoav Gallant had spoken out against controversial plans to overhaul the justice system.
In Jerusalem, police and soldiers used water cannon against demonstrators near Mr Netanyahu's house.
Early on Monday morning, Israel's President Isaac Herzog called on the government to halt the reforms.
"For the sake of the unity of the people of Israel, for the sake of responsibility, I call on you to stop the legislative process immediately," he said on Twitter, adding that "the eyes of all the people of Israel are on you".
The US also said it was deeply concerned about the developments and called for a compromise.
A week of disruption had already been planned over the new law.
The reforms include plans that would give the government decisive control over the committee which appoints judges.
They would also make it harder for courts to remove a leader deemed unfit for office, which has angered many who consider it in the interests of the incumbent, Benjamin Netanyahu, who faces an ongoing trial for corruption.
Mr Netanyahu says the reforms are designed to stop the courts over-reaching their powers and that they were voted for by the public at the last election.
After protesting outside Mr Netanyahu's home, the demonstrators - many flying Israeli flags and banging pots and pans - then evaded police forces to arrive at Israel's parliament, the Knesset.
One government employee told the BBC that she felt Mr Netanyahu "crossed every line we have as a democratic country".
"We're defending the last bit of democracy we have and I can't go to sleep this way. I can't do anything until we stop this craziness", she said.
...
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-65083776
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The Israeli Airports Authority said flights out of the main international airports have been grounded following the launch of a general strike. The strike by the Histadrut umbrella group, which represents more than 700,000 workers in health, transit and banking, among many other fields, could paralyse large parts of Israel's economy, which is already on shaky ground, ratcheting up the pressure on Netanyahu to suspend the overhaul.
The growing resistance to the plan came hours after tens of thousands of people burst into the streets around the country in a spontaneous show of anger at Netanyahu's decision to fire his defence minister after he called for a pause on the overhaul.
Chanting "the country is on fire," they lit bonfires on Tel Aviv's main highway, closing the throughway and many others throughout the country for hours.
The overhaul, driven by Netanyahu, who is on trial for corruption, and his allies in Israel's most right-wing government ever, has plunged Israel into one of its worst domestic crises.
It has sparked a sustained and intensifying protest movement that has spread to nearly all sectors of society, including its military, where reservists have increasingly come out publicly to say they will not serve a country veering toward autocracy.
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/worl...p&cvid=5f01371b09ee40f3a205c8c36986235e&ei=13
The growing resistance to the plan came hours after tens of thousands of people burst into the streets around the country in a spontaneous show of anger at Netanyahu's decision to fire his defence minister after he called for a pause on the overhaul.
Chanting "the country is on fire," they lit bonfires on Tel Aviv's main highway, closing the throughway and many others throughout the country for hours.
The overhaul, driven by Netanyahu, who is on trial for corruption, and his allies in Israel's most right-wing government ever, has plunged Israel into one of its worst domestic crises.
It has sparked a sustained and intensifying protest movement that has spread to nearly all sectors of society, including its military, where reservists have increasingly come out publicly to say they will not serve a country veering toward autocracy.
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/worl...p&cvid=5f01371b09ee40f3a205c8c36986235e&ei=13
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An uneasy calm is returning to Israel after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced he would delay a key part of controversial plans to overhaul the justice system.
On Monday night he said he would pause the legislation to prevent a "rupture among our people".
However it is unclear what a delay will achieve beyond buying time.
It followed intensified protests after he fired his defence minister, who had spoken against the plans.
On Monday night he said he would pause the legislation to prevent a "rupture among our people".
However it is unclear what a delay will achieve beyond buying time.
It followed intensified protests after he fired his defence minister, who had spoken against the plans.
daytrader
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Israel PM Netanyahu delays judicial overhaul after protests
Benjamin Netanyahu says he will delay reforms for several weeks after tens of thousands protested against the plans.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has announced that a controversial plan to overhaul the country’s judiciary will be delayed after months of protests, growing labour strikes and opposition from within his own government.
“When there’s an opportunity to avoid civil war through dialogue, I, as prime minister, am taking a time out for dialogue,” Netanyahu said in a nationally televised address on Monday.
He said he was determined to pass a judicial reform but called for “an attempt to achieve broad consensus”. The delay means that the bill will not be put to a vote in parliament until the end of April at the earliest.
The government’s plan to tighten parliament’s control over judicial processes has triggered some of the biggest mass protests in Israeli history, with the plan’s opponents calling the move a threat to democracy.
Netanyahu spoke after tens of thousands of Israelis demonstrated outside the Knesset or parliament and workers launched a nationwide strike in a dramatic escalation of the mass protest movement aimed at halting his plan.
The chaos shut down much of the country and threatened to paralyse the economy, with flights suspended at Ben Gurion International Airport and work halted at the country’s main seaports. Kindergartens and malls were also closed, as well as branches of the fast food chain McDonald’s.
Shortly after the address, the head of the country’s biggest labour union, Histadrut, said it would call off a general strike.
...
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023...u-suspends-judicial-change-plan-after-protest
Benjamin Netanyahu says he will delay reforms for several weeks after tens of thousands protested against the plans.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has announced that a controversial plan to overhaul the country’s judiciary will be delayed after months of protests, growing labour strikes and opposition from within his own government.
“When there’s an opportunity to avoid civil war through dialogue, I, as prime minister, am taking a time out for dialogue,” Netanyahu said in a nationally televised address on Monday.
He said he was determined to pass a judicial reform but called for “an attempt to achieve broad consensus”. The delay means that the bill will not be put to a vote in parliament until the end of April at the earliest.
The government’s plan to tighten parliament’s control over judicial processes has triggered some of the biggest mass protests in Israeli history, with the plan’s opponents calling the move a threat to democracy.
Netanyahu spoke after tens of thousands of Israelis demonstrated outside the Knesset or parliament and workers launched a nationwide strike in a dramatic escalation of the mass protest movement aimed at halting his plan.
The chaos shut down much of the country and threatened to paralyse the economy, with flights suspended at Ben Gurion International Airport and work halted at the country’s main seaports. Kindergartens and malls were also closed, as well as branches of the fast food chain McDonald’s.
Shortly after the address, the head of the country’s biggest labour union, Histadrut, said it would call off a general strike.
...
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023...u-suspends-judicial-change-plan-after-protest
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While flames lapped around melting tyres on Tel Aviv's main highway, doctors walked out of hospitals and Israel's main airport was shut down, Benjamin Netanyahu kept a country waiting.
Unprecedented protests and strikes gripped Israel on Monday, the climax of months of dissent over the government's plans to strip power from Israel's judges.
Now with a nation in crisis, all sides watched for the prime minister to act.
When he finally appeared on national TV - maximising the impact with a live address at the top of the 20:00 nightly news shows - he began by likening his position to a story about King Solomon.
Just as the biblical monarch had to judge which of two competing women was the real loving mother of a baby, he had made his own decision when it came to the two sides contesting his reforms.
He announced he was pausing the judicial changes until the next session of parliament, and would "extend my hand" in "compromise" and "dialogue" with parliamentary opponents.
The announcement appears to have done enough to bring the crisis back from the brink for now, and to give the official opposition space to say they will hold him to his word of negotiated compromise.
It has also split the vast movement that was campaigning against the reforms - with the bigger opposition parties in parliament giving his decision a cautious welcome, while leaders of the street demonstrations denounced it as a temporary freeze to "gaslight" critics. They vowed to push on with protests.
But the much bigger issues underlying this crisis - Jewish Israelis bitterly split over the role of religion and state, the dangerous fragility of checks on government power, and a total void of any political horizons for a shared future with the Palestinians - remain totally unresolved, and are only getting more aggravated.
Mr Netanyahu went on with his metaphor - just as one mother was unwilling to see King Solomon cut the baby in two, he was unwilling, he said, to divide the country.
Many of his critics say, however, that he actually had months to dilute or stop the contested reforms he started. They accuse him of letting the country get to boiling point first.
For him, his words carried a clear implication - a minority among his opponents were to blame for the crisis; they were prepared to cut the baby in half. He said he was there to act responsibly. "I am unwilling to cut the nation in two," he said.
It felt designed to draw most attention to the dividing lines, while giving Mr Netanyahu the air of being the only one who could save the country from itself.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-65097625
Unprecedented protests and strikes gripped Israel on Monday, the climax of months of dissent over the government's plans to strip power from Israel's judges.
Now with a nation in crisis, all sides watched for the prime minister to act.
When he finally appeared on national TV - maximising the impact with a live address at the top of the 20:00 nightly news shows - he began by likening his position to a story about King Solomon.
Just as the biblical monarch had to judge which of two competing women was the real loving mother of a baby, he had made his own decision when it came to the two sides contesting his reforms.
He announced he was pausing the judicial changes until the next session of parliament, and would "extend my hand" in "compromise" and "dialogue" with parliamentary opponents.
The announcement appears to have done enough to bring the crisis back from the brink for now, and to give the official opposition space to say they will hold him to his word of negotiated compromise.
It has also split the vast movement that was campaigning against the reforms - with the bigger opposition parties in parliament giving his decision a cautious welcome, while leaders of the street demonstrations denounced it as a temporary freeze to "gaslight" critics. They vowed to push on with protests.
But the much bigger issues underlying this crisis - Jewish Israelis bitterly split over the role of religion and state, the dangerous fragility of checks on government power, and a total void of any political horizons for a shared future with the Palestinians - remain totally unresolved, and are only getting more aggravated.
Mr Netanyahu went on with his metaphor - just as one mother was unwilling to see King Solomon cut the baby in two, he was unwilling, he said, to divide the country.
Many of his critics say, however, that he actually had months to dilute or stop the contested reforms he started. They accuse him of letting the country get to boiling point first.
For him, his words carried a clear implication - a minority among his opponents were to blame for the crisis; they were prepared to cut the baby in half. He said he was there to act responsibly. "I am unwilling to cut the nation in two," he said.
It felt designed to draw most attention to the dividing lines, while giving Mr Netanyahu the air of being the only one who could save the country from itself.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-65097625
daytrader
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Israel's Netanyahu Hits Back At Biden After His Remark On Judicial Reforms
Israel Protests: Joe Biden earlier said he hoped Benjamin Netanyahu would abandon judicial changes that had sparked protests in Israel and a political crisis for its government.
Israel is a sovereign country that does not make decisions based on pressures from abroad, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said overnight between Tuesday and Wednesday in response to comments by U.S. President Joe Biden.
Biden earlier said he hoped Netanyahu would abandon judicial changes that had sparked protests in Israel and a political crisis for its government.
"Israel is a sovereign country which makes its decisions by the will of its people and not based on pressures from abroad, including from the best of friends."
He said his administration was striving to make reforms "via broad consensus."
NDTV
Israel Protests: Joe Biden earlier said he hoped Benjamin Netanyahu would abandon judicial changes that had sparked protests in Israel and a political crisis for its government.
Israel is a sovereign country that does not make decisions based on pressures from abroad, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said overnight between Tuesday and Wednesday in response to comments by U.S. President Joe Biden.
Biden earlier said he hoped Netanyahu would abandon judicial changes that had sparked protests in Israel and a political crisis for its government.
"Israel is a sovereign country which makes its decisions by the will of its people and not based on pressures from abroad, including from the best of friends."
He said his administration was striving to make reforms "via broad consensus."
NDTV
James
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Israel is demonstrating itself as quite possibly the most right wing nation in the world, even more so than the USA.
For what is apparently the most legitimised democracy in the Middle East, Israeli voters seem to have a fundamentally undemocratic choice between right wing, very right wing, or far right fascist lunacy. They have had an unbelievable five general elections in three years.
The recent legislative developments throughout Israel are befitting of a country which doesn’t seem too far away from becoming a failed state.
daytrader
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Israel: self-proclaimed ‘racist’ politician nominated as New York consul general
May Golan has insulted Africans in Israel and disparaged the Reform movement, the largest Jewish denomination in the US
Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has nominated a far-right politician who once boasted that she is “proud to be a racist” as his country’s top diplomat in New York.
The appointment of May Golan was swiftly denounced by Israeli and American former diplomats, and the head of the largest Jewish denomination in the US, as an affront to the US and damaging for Israel.
A group of former Israeli ambassadors said they were “shocked” by the move.
“Golan’s appointment is outrageous as she is a racist and divisive figure, which is the exact opposite from what Israel needs in such a critical place,” they said.
Golan, who is a member of the Israeli parliament for Netanyahu’s Likud party and a minister without portfolio in the current government, is a supporter of the ultranationalist faction in the ruling coalition that is attempting to curb the power of Israel’s courts in what has been described as a “judicial coup”.
She will take over from Asaf Zamir, who resigned last month after telling a meeting of American Jewish donors that he was “deeply concerned about the direction [Israel] is going in right now”.
Golan made a political name for herself by denouncing African refugees in Israel, calling them “Muslim infiltrators”, criminals and rapists. She said many have Aids, suggested they were spreading HIV by working as waiters, and demanded they be expelled from the country.
“If I am racist for wanting to defend my country and for wanting to protect my basic rights and security, then I’m a proud racist,” she said at a political rally in 2013 as a member of the far-right Jewish Power party, a descendent of the Kach party that was outlawed under Israeli anti-terrorism laws.
...
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/apr/20/may-golan-israel-new-york-consular-role
May Golan has insulted Africans in Israel and disparaged the Reform movement, the largest Jewish denomination in the US
Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has nominated a far-right politician who once boasted that she is “proud to be a racist” as his country’s top diplomat in New York.
The appointment of May Golan was swiftly denounced by Israeli and American former diplomats, and the head of the largest Jewish denomination in the US, as an affront to the US and damaging for Israel.
A group of former Israeli ambassadors said they were “shocked” by the move.
“Golan’s appointment is outrageous as she is a racist and divisive figure, which is the exact opposite from what Israel needs in such a critical place,” they said.
Golan, who is a member of the Israeli parliament for Netanyahu’s Likud party and a minister without portfolio in the current government, is a supporter of the ultranationalist faction in the ruling coalition that is attempting to curb the power of Israel’s courts in what has been described as a “judicial coup”.
She will take over from Asaf Zamir, who resigned last month after telling a meeting of American Jewish donors that he was “deeply concerned about the direction [Israel] is going in right now”.
Golan made a political name for herself by denouncing African refugees in Israel, calling them “Muslim infiltrators”, criminals and rapists. She said many have Aids, suggested they were spreading HIV by working as waiters, and demanded they be expelled from the country.
“If I am racist for wanting to defend my country and for wanting to protect my basic rights and security, then I’m a proud racist,” she said at a political rally in 2013 as a member of the far-right Jewish Power party, a descendent of the Kach party that was outlawed under Israeli anti-terrorism laws.
...
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/apr/20/may-golan-israel-new-york-consular-role
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Tens of thousands of Israelis have rallied in Jerusalem in support of controversial plans by the far-right government to reform the judiciary.
It was the biggest demonstration of its kind yet. Plans include curbing the Supreme Court and giving the government control over the appointment of judges.
"The nation demands a judicial reform," was the repeated cry from the crowd.
Israelis are deeply split over the proposals, with huge weekly protests against them over the past four months.
Last month, there was also a widespread national strike, which even stopped departures from the country's main airport in Tel Aviv. Some army reservists have refused to do their reserve service in protest, which is seen as a concern for national security.
While Thursday's demonstration was billed as a "million man" march, it is estimated that some 150,000 to 200,000 joined in.
What is the crisis about?
Some participants trampled on posters of the Supreme Court justices and the Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara, who has become a bête noire for key members of the current government and its backers.
The justice and finance ministers addressed the crowd, promising to pass the judicial bills which were recently postponed by the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu.
At the time, Mr Netanyahu said he wanted to allow dialogue with his opponents. However, some cabinet ministers said they had agreed to the delay only until the parliament reconvened for its summer session on 30 April.
"To all my friends who are sitting here, see how much power we have," far-right lawmaker and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich told the rally.
"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," he went on.
The Justice Minister, Yariv Levin, said that two million Israelis who had voted for the current government had given a mandate for the changes.
"We are told that if the reform passes, there'll be a dictatorship. There is no greater lie than this," he said.
On Twitter, Mr Netanyahu wrote: "I thank the hundreds of thousands of Israelis who came to Jerusalem tonight to support our government. Your passion and patriotism moves me deeply."
Supporters of the changes argue they would restore balance between the branches of government so that the elected parliament has the final say, as fitting in a democracy.
Critics insist they remove checks on those in power, weaken the independence of the courts and endanger democracy.
At events for and against the judicial overhaul there has been a sea of blue and white Israeli flags.
Recent polls indicate that the overhaul plans as they stand are very unpopular and that many Israelis would support a compromise.
The Israeli president - whose role is largely as a figurehead - has been urging both sides to reach a compromise and has hosted talks between politicians.
In response to the pro-overhaul rally, the opposition leader Yair Lapid wrote on social media that he felt "deep shame and sadness" at how images of top justices had been trodden on.
"The inflammatory speeches of the ministers and MKs [parliamentarians] only continue to tear the country apart and dismantle Israeli society," he went on. "Where does this government want to lead us?"
Senior figures in the anti-government protest movement have pledged to bring even larger crowds out on the streets of Tel Aviv and other Israeli cities on Saturday, for a 17th consecutive week of demonstrations.
BBC
It was the biggest demonstration of its kind yet. Plans include curbing the Supreme Court and giving the government control over the appointment of judges.
"The nation demands a judicial reform," was the repeated cry from the crowd.
Israelis are deeply split over the proposals, with huge weekly protests against them over the past four months.
Last month, there was also a widespread national strike, which even stopped departures from the country's main airport in Tel Aviv. Some army reservists have refused to do their reserve service in protest, which is seen as a concern for national security.
While Thursday's demonstration was billed as a "million man" march, it is estimated that some 150,000 to 200,000 joined in.
What is the crisis about?
Some participants trampled on posters of the Supreme Court justices and the Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara, who has become a bête noire for key members of the current government and its backers.
The justice and finance ministers addressed the crowd, promising to pass the judicial bills which were recently postponed by the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu.
At the time, Mr Netanyahu said he wanted to allow dialogue with his opponents. However, some cabinet ministers said they had agreed to the delay only until the parliament reconvened for its summer session on 30 April.
"To all my friends who are sitting here, see how much power we have," far-right lawmaker and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich told the rally.
"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," he went on.
The Justice Minister, Yariv Levin, said that two million Israelis who had voted for the current government had given a mandate for the changes.
"We are told that if the reform passes, there'll be a dictatorship. There is no greater lie than this," he said.
On Twitter, Mr Netanyahu wrote: "I thank the hundreds of thousands of Israelis who came to Jerusalem tonight to support our government. Your passion and patriotism moves me deeply."
Supporters of the changes argue they would restore balance between the branches of government so that the elected parliament has the final say, as fitting in a democracy.
Critics insist they remove checks on those in power, weaken the independence of the courts and endanger democracy.
At events for and against the judicial overhaul there has been a sea of blue and white Israeli flags.
Recent polls indicate that the overhaul plans as they stand are very unpopular and that many Israelis would support a compromise.
The Israeli president - whose role is largely as a figurehead - has been urging both sides to reach a compromise and has hosted talks between politicians.
In response to the pro-overhaul rally, the opposition leader Yair Lapid wrote on social media that he felt "deep shame and sadness" at how images of top justices had been trodden on.
"The inflammatory speeches of the ministers and MKs [parliamentarians] only continue to tear the country apart and dismantle Israeli society," he went on. "Where does this government want to lead us?"
Senior figures in the anti-government protest movement have pledged to bring even larger crowds out on the streets of Tel Aviv and other Israeli cities on Saturday, for a 17th consecutive week of demonstrations.
BBC
Bhaijaan
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A war time hero.
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