September 13, 2023

The Showdown Begins

Israel’s supreme court heard the first legal challenge to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s judicial overhaul plan on Tuesday, a case that underscored the tribunal’s showdown with the government and which risks plunging the country into a constitutional crisis, the Associated Press reported Tuesday. The case centers...

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September 04, 2023

What’s to Celebrate?

Violent clashes erupted in Israel’s Tel Aviv over the weekend, as Eritrean asylum seekers expressed their anger against Eritrea’s government during celebrations of the African country’s independence, the Washington Post reported. The unrest began Saturday when the Eritrean embassy in Tel Aviv organized an event celebrating...

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August 03, 2023

Shades of Gray

Israel’s parliament passed a law that will designate terrorist, nationalist or racist motivations as aggravating factors in crimes of sexual harassment and sexual assault, prompting condemnation from victims’ associations and opposition lawmakers, the Times of Israel reported. Under the new bill, fines for sexual harassment motivated...

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August 01, 2023

To Be Reasonable

Left and right in Israel are split over the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu curtailing the country’s high court from citing the “reasonableness doctrine” in its decisions. As the Atlantic magazine explained, the doctrine is a British common law tool that gives judges the power...

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July 25, 2023

Brace, Brace

Israel’s parliament on Monday passed the first part of a judicial reform that would significantly curb the top court’s ability to review government decisions, despite ongoing mass protests against the planned overhaul, Axios reported. The ruling conservative coalition’s lawmakers unanimously voted 64-0 to strip the Supreme...

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July 12, 2023

Unyielding Disruption

Thousands of Israelis blocked roads and clashed with police across the country Tuesday, the latest mass demonstrations against the government’s plan to overhaul the judiciary, the BBC reported. The protests – known as the “day of disruption” by organizers – saw Israelis cutting off important transportation...

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June 20, 2023

Open For Business

Israel’s government approved this week a series of changes to expedite the process of constructing buildings in Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, a move that has unnerved many of the country’s allies and angered the Palestinian leadership, the Hill reported. The new resolution would...

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May 08, 2023

The Heat Stays On

Thousands of people demonstrated across Israel over the weekend for the 18th consecutive week, with protesters attempting to keep up pressure on the government over its controversial plan to overhaul the judiciary, the Times of Israel reported. The latest demonstrations saw a number of Israeli figures...

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April 26, 2023

A Chipped Diamond

Subdued protests marked commemoration ceremonies honoring the 75th anniversary of Israel’s founding Tuesday as the country continues its battle over a plan to reform its judiciary, the Washington Post reported. At military cemeteries across the country, mourners honoring the fallen – as is tradition in the...

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April 12, 2023

Under Fire

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reversed his decision to fire his defense minister, more than two weeks after the official called on the government to suspend a contentious judicial overhaul plan that had sparked fierce demonstrations across Israel, Axios reported. Netanyahu announced Monday that he was...

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April 04, 2023

Israeli Spring

Civil unrest in Israel has prompted many observers to wonder if the same pro-democracy impulses that motivated Arab Spring activists more than a decade ago are now emerging in the Jewish state on the Mediterranean. The protests recently forced Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to pause...

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April 03, 2023

No Quarter

Hundreds of thousands of Israelis demonstrated across the country over the weekend, the latest unrest targeting Israel’s conservative government’s plan to overhaul the judiciary and the first protests since Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu paused the bill last week, the Washington Post reported. Protests took place in...

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March 28, 2023

The Blink

The Israeli government temporarily backed off from a planned judicial reform Monday, just hours before it was to go to a vote after protesters threatened to shut down the country in one of the largest strikes in years, Reuters reported. “Out of national responsibility, from a...

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March 21, 2023

A Little Give, a Little Take

The Israeli government plans to soften its judicial overhaul proposal following months of mass protests and international criticism over a controversial reform that critics say threatens the country’s democratic foundations, Reuters reported. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced Monday that the government would amend a contentious bill...

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March 15, 2023

No See, No Hear

Israeli lawmakers in a first vote approved a draft law that would overhaul the country’s judiciary, even as thousands have marched in the streets for weeks against the contentious bill, Agence France-Presse reported Tuesday. The proposed legislation – introduced earlier this year by the governing conservative...

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March 03, 2023

Small Fires, Flaring Issues

Israeli police launched a crackdown against thousands of protesters this week, as demonstrations against the right-wing government’s plan to overhaul Israel’s judiciary continue into their second month, the Washington Post reported. Authorities threw stun grenades, fired water cannons and arrested at least 40 people during Wednesday’s...

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February 22, 2023

The Roar

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused demonstrators of “trampling on democracy,” as huge protests continued this week against the ruling right-wing coalition’s plan to overhaul Israel’s judiciary, the Guardian reported. More than 100,000 people protested outside the country’s parliament in Jerusalem on Monday, as a preliminary...

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February 21, 2023

Tricky Ties

The African Union (AU) confirmed this week that Israel’s observer status to the pan-African bloc was suspended, an announcement that came shortly after an incident where an Israeli representative was prevented from attending this year’s summit, Al Jazeera reported. Over the weekend, videos circulated on social...

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