Why are Israelis protesting against PM Netanyahu’s judicial overhaul proposals? | In Focus podcast

In Focus by The Hindu

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s proposals for a judicial overhaul that would limit the powers of the Supreme Court have triggered massive protests in the country. More than 100,000 protesters gathered in front of the Israeli Parliament or the Knesset, and as the country’s most powerful trade unions called a general strike, there were flight cancellations at Tel Aviv international airport, and municipality workers, tech workers, government bureaucrats, and most significantly, even army reservists joined the pushback against the proposals.

US President Joe Biden pitched in, asking Netanyahu to ‘walk away’ from the judicial overhaul, prompting Israeli Prime Minister to retort that he does not take decisions based on pressure from abroad. On Monday, however, Netanyahu announced that he was delaying the judicial changes to the next Parliamentary session, ostensibly to buy more time to build a compromise with the proposals’ political opponents.

So, what exactly are the implications of the proposed judicial changes? Do they constitute a threat to Israeli democracy, as alleged by their Opposition leaders? What are the security implications of the fact that these proposals seem to be causing deep divisions in Israeli society?