Domestic opposition to Netanyahu’s reform is growing

In short, the package of laws that has sparked controversy in Israel will redistribute a large amount of power from the Israeli judiciary to Parliament, giving the latter the ability to review decisions issued by the highest court in the country.

Parliament would also be given greater influence in appointing new judges, while the law could protect Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, accused of corruption, from impeachment.

After submitting the proposal Mass protests In the country, Israel’s defense minister, Yoav Gallant, has broken the party line. in a televised speech On Saturday, he urged his colleagues to withdraw the reform.

– Gallant said: The operation must be stopped for the sake of the security of Israel and our sons and daughters.

He gets support from his party colleagues

After the speech, Gallant received support from more of his party colleagues. Parliamentarian Yuli Edelstein, chairman of the Knesset’s Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee and a member of Netanyahu’s Likud party, also called for the process to stop.

– We do not want to bury the reform, but putting it to a vote before we are sure that we will get support is a risk that we must avoid, says Edelstein in an interview with Israel Radio on Sunday.

Similar voices are also being heard from other Likud parliamentarians, Reuters reports, but few want to say how they will actually vote when the issue is decided.

Small margins

Netanyahu’s coalition holds 64 of the 120 seats in the Knesset, so the margins for MPs to break party lines is relatively small. Nor was a timeline provided for when the vote would take place.

Pro-reform Likud member Tali Gottliffe feels confident the first judge appointment bill will pass — and soon. She herself counts the number of yes votes at 62 in the current situation.

– Even if no one comes, we have 61 people. She told Israel Radio, according to Reuters, that the vote would take place this week.