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JERUSALEM, Feb. 14 (AP) Thousands of Israelis protested outside the parliament building on Monday in a show of force against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as his government officially launches controversial reforms to the country. The plan of the legal system.
Loud demonstrations outside the Knesset, coupled with a stormy committee vote inside the building, appear to have deepened divisions over Netanyahu’s plans.
The plan sparked weeks of mass protests, widespread condemnation in Israeli society and the attention of President Joe Biden.
Netanyahu and his allies say the country’s unelected judges are too powerful and need to be reined in. His opponents say Netanyahu, who is on trial on corruption charges, has a deep conflict of interest. They say his planned reforms will undermine the country’s democratic checks and balances and are a poorly disguised plot to make his criminal case disappear.
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Monday’s demonstration was the largest the city has seen in years. Thousands of people poured into Jerusalem on packed trains from across the country, raising flags and chanting “democracy” as they left the station.
“They heard us,” opposition leader Yar Lapid told the crowd, pointing to parliament. “They heard our strength and our promise. They pretended they didn’t hear it. They pretended they weren’t afraid. But they heard it, and they were afraid.”
Organizers claimed more than 100,000 people attended Monday’s rally. They include Arab, women’s rights and LGBTQ activists as well as opposition parties.
The crowd was noisy, blowing horns, chanting “democracy,” singing, and whistling. But the incident passed smoothly, and police said no arrests were made.
Many protesters carried blue and white Israeli flags and posters denouncing what they said was an attack on the country’s democracy. “Shame! Shame!” they chanted, “Israel will not be dictatorial.”
“People won’t accept it,” said Boaz Zarki, a demonstrator in Jerusalem. “The separation of powers is essential for a democracy to exist.”
Other large demonstrations have also been held in cities across the country.
Netanyahu has pushed ahead with his plans despite calls by Israel’s puppet president to freeze the legislation and start dialogue with the opposition.
As protesters gathered outside, a parliamentary committee controlled by Netanyahu allies passed the first pieces of legislation related to the plan.
That included a proposal to give the Netanyahu-dominated legislature control over judicial appointments. Currently, judges are appointed by an independent committee that includes lawyers, politicians and judges.
A second proposal would strip the Supreme Court of its power to review the legality of major pieces of legislation known as “basic laws.”
Still in the works is another proposal that would give parliament the power to overturn decisions the Supreme Court doesn’t like. Opponents say the proposal would push Israel toward a system like Hungary and Poland in which leaders control all major levers of power.
Opposition MPs stand on conference tables, slap desks and shout “Shame!” during unruly committee votes. Committee chair Simcha Rothman, a member of a far-right religious party, expelled Several opposition politicians, at least two of them, were dragged away by security guards.
Monday’s vote brings the first batch of legislation to the full parliament – which will have to pass them again in three separate votes.
The first such vote is expected to take place next Monday. Netanyahu controls an absolute majority in parliament, and nothing seems to stop him from advancing. Still, Monday’s developments set the tone for what’s to come.
Netanyahu accused the opposition of “deliberately dragging the country into anarchy”, but also appeared to reject the possibility of dialogue with opponents.
Later Monday, Netanyahu’s justice minister, Yariv Levin, and the committee’s chairman, Rothman, issued a joint statement inviting opposition leaders to a meeting chaired by the president.
But opposition leaders rejected the proposal, saying the legislation must be frozen before dialogue can begin. “Anything else is capitulation. Anything else will derail the protests,” said Merav Michaeli, leader of the opposition Labor Party.
Netanyahu and his allies took office in December after the country’s fifth election in less than four years. Like his predecessors, that election focused on Netanyahu’s fitness for office at a time when he faces serious criminal charges.
Netanyahu has lashed out at the country’s police, prosecutors and judges, saying he is the victim of a deep state plot to overthrow him. His critics say his motivation is personal vendetta and the plan would set Israel on a path similar to authoritarian states such as Hungary and Poland.
Eliad Shraga, president of the Movement for Quality Government, a civil society group that organized Monday’s demonstration, said the rally was aimed at sending a message of support to the Supreme Court and a warning to the Knesset. (Associated Press)
(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from a Syndicated News feed, the content body may not have been modified or edited by LatestLY staff)
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