Tel Aviv, Israel (AP) – Israel is once again fighting a war on multiple fronts, but a battle is also being brewed within the country.
Thousands of Israelis have joined anti-government protests in recent days. A former Supreme Court chief judge warned of the civil war. Experts say a constitutional crisis could arise if the Israeli government adopts plans to fire top legal and security officials.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced last week that he was firing Ronen Bar, the head of the internal security department, on the grounds of preventing the crisis of confidence triggered by the Hamas’ October 7, 2023 attack. The Netanyahu government also initiated a process to dismiss the Attorney General, accusing her of hindering her agenda.
The move comes as Shin Bet is investigating a possible infiltration of an Arab country into Netanyahu’s office, which is being tried for corruption.
They are having a showdown between Netanyahu and the judiciary, which is deepening the division in Israel and potentially sparking unrest as Israel is struggling by the war.
Tensions between government and state institutions
The Netanyahu government carried out a comprehensive overhaul of the judiciary in early 2023, a process that has touched large-scale protests.
Critics say the overhaul will undermine the country’s delicate checks and balances by giving Netanyahu too much power. He and his council coalition believe that the judiciary has been over-interventionist and is blocking its legislative agenda.
Opponents also criticized Netanyahu for promoting change in the corruption trial. They say that a strong and independent judiciary is the necessary protection against authoritarian rule.
Hamas’s October 7 attack triggered the war in Gaza and suspended overhaul. But it opened up a new division for the country because they did not prevent the deadliest day in Israel’s history, and he blamed the blame.
Netanyahu avoided admitting responsibility and instead sought to point his finger at the head and shin bets of the army. He has long blamed his “deep state” on his desire to overthrow his rule.
Netanyahu said in a surprise announcement last week that he was dismissing the bar association, sparking mass protests from critics who said the move would undermine Israel’s independent state agency, a punishment for Shin Bet’s investigation into Netanyahu’s office, or derail it altogether.
This step helped bring far-right politician Itama Ben-Gvir back to the Netanyahu government and strengthened the rule of Israeli leaders ahead of a key budget vote. Ben-Gvir resigned a few weeks ago in protest of a temporary ceasefire, and his return to office hours after the resumption of the Gaza war.
Bell himself said he planned to leave his position in due course, including hiring a Netanyahu adviser to launch an impact campaign in Israel after his sensitive investigation into Gulf State’s close ties with Hamas. Netanyahu has proposed that there is no evidence that the investigation was the result of a collusion between the attorney agreement and the attorney general to thwart the firing of the domestic security chief.
Netanyahu’s government vote on Sunday to remove lawyer Gali Baharav-Miara, starting a process that could take weeks.
Disobedience to the Supreme Court can lead to chaos
In a country without an official constitution, only one parliament controlled by the Netanyahu coalition, the Israeli Supreme Court has long been an important check on government rulings.
The decision to dismiss the law firm has been challenged in court, which issued an injunction that freezes the move until further hearings. In the coming weeks, the court will be expected to rule whether the dismissal is legal and whether it is a conflict of interest given the Qatar investigation.
In the case of the Attorney General, the government passed a symbolic decision on Sunday, demanding her to fire. The committee, expected to stack with Netanyahu’s allies, will hear the government and Baharav-Miara’s position before issuing its recommendations. Only then will the Netanyahu government make a final decision on her fate.
If the committee continues to be fired, it may face challenges in the Supreme Court. Once again, Netanyahu is expected to have a conflict of interest as he is firing officials who serve as head of public prosecutors, the office is working hard to corruption.
It is unclear whether the government will accept a decision it doesn’t like.
“The dangerous situation is if they don’t accept the ruling,” said Amir Fuchs, a senior fellow at the Jerusalem think tank Israel Institute for Democracy. He said that this would cause a crisis, the rule of the court or government should be followed and could lead to chaos.
Worry about internal conflicts
These concerns will increase since the start of the sacking. In a series of media interviews conducted this weekend, 88-year-old Aharon Barak, an outstanding legal thinking in Israel, announced his concerns about the outbreak of a potential civil war. He also added nearly 20 former Supreme Court judges in a letter Sunday, saying that firing the attorney general threatened the rule of law.
Opposition leader Yair Lapid called for a tax uprising if the government disobeyed the ruling. The leader of the country’s top trade union said ignoring the court ruling was a red line, which suggests he could launch a general strike.
When the legal overhaul was announced, the warning was very similar to 2023. Thousands of people poured into the streets in the ongoing protests.
The general strike was summoned, and the reserves threatened to report military service if the overhaul continued. Military service was mandatory for most Jews at the age of 18, but the army relied heavily on older reserves, especially during wartime. Some analysts view this internal conflict as a factor in the timing of Hamas’ attack. This turmoil may be just a pioneer.
Commentator Nadav Eyal wrote in Yediot Ahronot Daily: “Disobedience to the court is illegal.” The result could be “a type that broad civil disobedience that the government will not survive”.
Tia Goldenberg, Associated Press
