Tens of thousands of Israelis demonstrated Monday outside the Knesset (parliament) against a controversial amendment to the judicial system that aims to consolidate lawmakers' control over the Supreme Court.

The demonstration is part of protests that have been going on for 6 weeks, at a time when the government has begun preliminary voting on a series of laws.

The demonstrators, who waved Israeli flags, carried banners with slogans rejecting the amendments, including "Save Israel's democracy".

Demonstrations and a partial strike in Israel to protest against reforms in the judicial system,


may God protect us!!!

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— Eddy Cohen אדי כהן 🇮🇱 (@EdyCohen) February 13, 2023

Several professional groups in Israel plan to go on strike to protest this amendment, which is scheduled to be approved by the Knesset this afternoon, Monday, as part of the controversial reforms.

In recent weeks, tens of thousands of Israelis have taken to the streets to denounce justice reform plans drawn up by Benjamin Netanyahu's government, which critics say undermine judicial oversight of ministers.


judicial coup

The demonstrators belonging to left-wing movements and parties fear that the new ruling combination will overthrow the judicial system, and that it seeks to end Israel as a democratic state, in their opinion.

At the beginning of February, the Israeli Public Prosecutor announced that the prime minister should distance himself from his government's efforts to introduce changes to the country's judicial system.

Israeli Attorney General Ghali Bahrav Mayara said - in a statement - that Netanyahu may face a conflict of interest, citing his trial in corruption cases.

She added that the government's proposed amendments to the judicial system "harm the democratic balance" in Israel.

The alleged changes aim to give Parliament the power to overturn Supreme Court decisions by a simple majority, and give politicians more influence in appointing judges.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in remarks he made at the start of the weekly cabinet meetings on Sunday, warned demonstrators against the use of violence. government policy".

He added that democratic elections gave him the authority and he has "a clear mandate from the citizens of Israel" to pursue his policies.

Organizers of Monday's demonstration did not call for violence, although there has been a wave of protests from people angry about reforms in the past and threats of violence if the law is passed.


threat to democracy

Critics, both at home and abroad, see the planned judicial "reforms" as a threat to the democratic separation of powers, while the government says the Supreme Court wields too much political influence and this needs to change.

According to the plans of Justice Minister Yariv Levin, the parliamentary majority - according to the amendments - can pass a law even if the Supreme Court says it violates the country's basic law, which the opposition sees as "the beginning of the end of democracy."

Last Saturday, the Israeli N12 news channel published a poll revealing that 62% of Israelis want to either stop the proposed judicial plans temporarily or abandon them altogether.

This is not the first time that Israel has witnessed a series of weekly demonstrations against a government headed by Netanyahu. Israel witnessed huge demonstrations against his previous government between 2020 and 2021, which lasted for more than 10 months.