Former Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz on Friday expressed fear of a civil war in Israel, saying society was disintegrating from within.
This came in a tweet commenting on the increasing frequency of demonstrations against the judicial reform plan that Benjamin Netanyahu's government intends to implement.
Gantz, an opposition leader, said "I fear there will be a civil war here" in Israel, adding: "I think nobody wants that, but the deterioration on a negative slope and the risk of civil war is increasing."
"These are not prophecies stemming from anger, this is realistic, I live within my people and I see how we are disintegrating," he said.
On Wednesday, Israeli President Isaac Herzog made a similar statement, saying, "Whoever thinks that a real civil war is a limit that we will not reach, he does not understand."
Herzog presented a plan to resolve the dispute between the government and the opposition regarding the plan for judicial reforms.
He noted that his plan strengthens the Knesset, the government and the judicial system, and preserves "the Jewish and democratic State of Israel."
For more than 10 weeks, tens of thousands of Israelis have been demonstrating almost daily against the Netanyahu government's planned judicial reform plan.
The opposition says the plan marks the beginning of the end of democracy, while Netanyahu says it aims to rebalance the executive, legislative and judicial powers.
The plan includes amendments limiting the powers of the Supreme Court and giving the government control over the appointment of judges.