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Israel’s Supreme Court will hear challenge to law limiting its power, potentially teeing up constitutional crisis

TEL AVIV (JTA) — The Israeli Supreme Court has announced that it will hear petitions challenging a new law that limits its ability to strike down government decisions.
The challenges won’t have their day in court until September, but the announcement paves the way for a possible constitutional crisis in Israel. That’s a scenario that a range of scholars and officials have worried about for months, as Israel’s right-wing government has pursued an effort to sap the power and independence of the Supreme Court amid mass street protests and civil disobedience.
The first piece of that judicial overhaul plan passed on Monday. The legislation bars the Supreme Court from striking down decisions by the government or by minister that it deems “unreasonable.” Supporters of the law say it curbs inappropriate judicial activism while the law’s opponents say it removes a check on the government and upsets Israel’s separation of powers. Large, disruptive protests coalesced after the law’s passage, with demonstrators blocking highways and lighting bonfires. Dozens were arrested.
On Wednesday, the Supreme Court announced that it would not file an injunction to freeze the law, which took effect that day. But it said it would hear challenges to the law, which were filed by a range of groups, including nonprofits, parliamentary opposition parties and individual citizens.
“We are ready. We will appear at the Supreme Court to defend Israeli democracy and do everything we can to stop the judicial coup,” said Eliad Shraga, head of the Movement for Quality Government, a group that filed one of the petitions, according to the Times of Israel. “We will continue to protest and fight everywhere and from every podium until the threat is removed.”
Israel does not have a constitution and is governed by a set of so-called Basic Laws that have an enhanced status. The measure passed on Monday amends one of those laws, and if the court strikes it down, it would be the first time in its history that it has negated a basic law.
That potentially unprecedented situation could be a spur for a constitutional crisis, which would occur if Israel’s governing coalition opts to disregard the court ruling. How that kind of situation may be resolved would be unclear, and such a dispute between two branches of government has been predicted by scholars who worry that it could cause further unrest in Israeli society.
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Israel Receives Shipment of Heavy Bombs Cleared by Trump

US President Donald Trump looks on as he signs an executive order in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, US, Jan. 31, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Carlos Barria
Israel has received a shipment of heavy MK-84 bombs from the United States, after US President Donald Trump lifted a block imposed on the export of the munitions by the administration of predecessor Joe Biden, the defense ministry said on Sunday.
The MK-84 is an unguided 2,000 pound bomb, which can rip through thick concrete and metal, creating a wide blast radius.
The Biden administration declined to clear them for export to Israel out of concern about the impact on densely populated areas of the Gaza Strip.
The Biden administration sent thousands of 2,000-pound bombs to Israel after the Oct. 7, 2023 attack by Palestinian Hamas terrorists from Gaza but later held up one of the shipments. The hold was lifted by Trump last month.
“The munitions shipment that arrived in Israel tonight, released by the Trump Administration, represents a significant asset for the Air Force and the IDF and serves as further evidence of the strong alliance between Israel and the United States,” Defense Minister Israel Katz said late on Saturday.
The shipment arrived after days of concern about whether a fragile ceasefire in Gaza agreed last month would hold, after both sides accused each other of violating the terms of the deal to halt fighting to allow the exchange of hostages held in Gaza for Palestinian prisoners and detainees in Israeli jails.
Washington has announced assistance for Israel worth billions of dollars since the war began.
The post Israel Receives Shipment of Heavy Bombs Cleared by Trump first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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US Mideast Envoy Says Phase Two Gaza Talks to Continue This Week

US President Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy-designate Steve Witkoff gives a speech at the inaugural parade inside Capital One Arena on the inauguration day of Trump’s second presidential term, in Washington, DC, Jan. 20, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Carlos Barria
US Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff said on Sunday that talks on phase two of a ceasefire deal between Israel and Palestinian terrorists Hamas would continue this week “at a location to be determined” to figure out how to reach a successful conclusion.
He told Fox News that he had “very productive and constructive” calls on Sunday with Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Qatar’s Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani and Egypt’s director of intelligence.
Witkoff said they spoke about “the sequencing of phase two, setting forth positions on both sides, so we can understand… where we are today, and then continuing talks this week at a location to be determined so that we can figure out how we get to the end of phase two successfully.”
The post US Mideast Envoy Says Phase Two Gaza Talks to Continue This Week first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Arab States to Reveal 5-Year Plan to Rebuild Gaza: No Hamas or Relocation

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi attends the Arab summit in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, May 31, 2019. Photo: REUTERS/Hamad l Mohammed/File Photo.
i24 News – Arab countries will unveil their plan for the reconstruction of Gaza on February 27 in Cairo. This initiative, developed by the Palestinians and handed over to the Egyptians for implementation, will be presented to the leaders of Jordan, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Qatar. The plan provides for reconstruction over three to five years, without the displacement of the Palestinian population and without Hamas control. The funding, estimated at several hundred million dollars, will come from Gulf countries. The work will be carried out by Egyptian companies, representing a significant source of income for Egypt, which is strongly opposed to any migration of Palestinians out of Gaza. The workforce will consist mainly of local Palestinians.
“The goal is to marginalize Hamas so that it understands that it has lost control of Gaza, and to completely eliminate the terrorist organization’s grip on the population and the territory within 5 years from the start of reconstruction,” a source involved in the plan said.
An independent “Palestinian administration,” separate from the Palestinian Authority but relying on it, will oversee the reconstruction. This power structure is designed to get the approval of Israel and the United States, who refuse direct management by the Palestinian Authority.
Arab countries fear a resurgence of fighting by Israel, which could, in their view, favor US President Donald Trump’s plan to move Palestinians to neighboring countries. The former US president said he wanted to see Jordan, Egypt, and other Arab countries welcome more displaced people from Gaza, so that the war-torn area can be “cleaned up.”
According to analyzed satellite images, approximately 65% of the buildings in Gaza have been destroyed during the war. Experts estimate that reconstruction could take more than a decade and cost several hundred billion dollars.
The post Arab States to Reveal 5-Year Plan to Rebuild Gaza: No Hamas or Relocation first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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