MOSCOW, 27 Mar. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told his coalition partners about the suspension of judicial reform, the TV and radio company CAN reported.
According to journalists, the main ideologist of the initiative and Justice Minister Yariv Levin realized that «there is no other choice.» All he has to do is convince National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, one of the Cabinet's most far-right members, of this, allegedly.
The Netanyahu government's proposed package of laws significantly limits the powers of the Supreme Court and gives the government control over the appointment of judges. The Knesset Special Committee approved it for the second and third readings.
The bill, passed on first reading on March 15, has been unofficially dubbed «Deri Law 2.0» for potentially paving the way for the return of the former Interior Minister Aryeh Deri, who was dismissed by the prime minister after the relevant decision of the Supreme Court in connection with previous convictions.
Protests against the reform have not subsided in Israel for the twelfth week in a row. According to local media, more than 600,000 people took to the streets last Sunday.
A new wave of demonstrations was provoked by the resignation of Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Galant, who became the first key minister of the Netanyahu government to oppose the adoption of new laws. Previously, various groups of Israel Defense Forces (IDF) reservists wrote open letters to the government demanding a stop to the reform and refused to serve in the reserve.