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Netanyahu to advance partial version of Israel’s judicial overhaul as protests continue
(JTA) — The Israeli government is poised to advance its proposal to weaken the country’s Supreme Court, even as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he had dropped the plan’s most prominent provision.
The renewed legislative effort comes amid continued street protests against the proposed reform, which have taken place at least weekly since the beginning of this year. Widespread demonstrations in March — in addition to other threats of civil disobedience — led to a pause in the advance of the reforms and sparked negotiations between the governing coalition and opposition over the legislation’s content.
Those talks appear to have broken down, and now Netanyahu’s government appears ready to bring some of the bills back to the floor of Israel’s parliament, the Knesset. His coalition, which includes far-right parties, holds 64 of the Knesset’s 120 seats.
But according to Netanyahu, the reform will return to the table absent its most contentious provision, which would have allowed a bare majority of lawmakers to override Supreme Court decisions striking down laws. That proposal, known as the override clause, was at the heart of critics’ claims that the judicial overhaul would endanger Israeli democracy by sapping the court of its power. In an interview last week with the Wall Street Journal, Netanyahu said the override clause was “out” of the legislative package.
Instead, lawmakers will focus on passing a law that limits the Supreme Court’s ability to strike down governmental decisions it concludes are “unreasonable.” Earlier this year, the court used that justification to bar Aryeh Deri, a leading haredi Orthodox politician who has been repeatedly convicted of crimes, from being appointed to Netanyahu’s cabinet.
The legislation currently under consideration would reportedly strip the court of the power to strike down the decisions of nationally elected officials due to “unreasonableness.” The doctrine could still be used to strike down decisions of unelected government officials and local officials such as mayors, according to the Israeli publication Ynet.
Netanyahu also pledged to advance a bill changing the makeup of the committee that appoints judges, a key portion of the proposed overhaul. A previous version of that bill would have given the governing coalition full control over judicial appointments, but Netanyahu said the new bill would be more limited.
He did not say anything about a piece of the reforms that passed one hurdle in February but has not advanced since. That legislation would bar the Supreme Court from striking down “basic laws,” Israel’s closest parallel to a constitution, in a move that some observers said could render the broader override clause unneeded.
Netanyahu’s pledges appear to have had limited effect on opponents of the overhaul. Gali Baharav-Miara, the Israeli attorney general, called the proposed “unreasonableness” law “a black hole that will damage democracy.”
Protest organizers said hundreds of thousands of people attended this weekend’s demonstrations, which took place across the country on Saturday night for the 26th week in a row. Protesters also vowed to gather at Ben-Gurion Airport’s bustling third terminal on Monday in protest of the overhaul. Police cautioned protesters against blocking the roads surrounding the airport, which a senior official characterized as a security risk.
Meanwhile, some of his right-wing allies in the government expressed disappointment about Netanyahu’s comments.
“Surrendering to those who burn the Ayalon and call for civil unrest is a victory for violence and a loss for Israel,” tweeted Itamar Ben-Gvir, the far-right national security minister, referring to the Tel Aviv highway that has been a locus of protests.
Netanyahu’s statements garnered praise from the Jewish Federations of North America, which said it was “encouraged” by his pledge to drop the override clause. The group had come out against the override legislation earlier this year, and said in a statement on Thursday that “any reforms must leave intact a strong system of checks and balances, which is key to the democratic pillar of protecting minority rights.”
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The post Netanyahu to advance partial version of Israel’s judicial overhaul as protests continue appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
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United Nations ‘Condemns’ Israel for Responding to Houthi Attacks, Decries ‘Escalation’ of Violence
United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres speaks to members of the Security Council during a meeting to address the situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian question, at UN headquarters in New York City, New York, US, April 18, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz
In its latest salvo against the Jewish state, the United Nations (UN) condemned Israel for executing retaliatory strikes against the Houthi terror group in Yemen.
“The Secretary-General condemns escalation between Yemen and Israel,” Stéphanie Tremblay, a UN spokesperson, said in Thursday statements on behalf of UN Secretary General António Guterres.
“The Secretary-General is gravely concerned about intensified escalation in Yemen and Israel. Israeli airstrikes today on Sana’a International Airport, the Red Sea ports and power stations in Yemen are especially alarming. The airstrikes reportedly resulted in numerous casualties including at least three killed and dozens more injured” Tremblay added.
On Thursday, Israel launched a barrage of missile attacks on Houthi bases in Yemen, provoking international outrage. Israel targeted a major airport in Sanaa and ports in Hodeida, Al-Salif and Ras Qantib, and power stations, locations the Jewish state claims were used by the terror group to sneak in both Iranian weapons and high-ranking Iranian officials.
On Friday, the Houthis claimed responsibility for an airstrike aimed at Ben Gurion airport, claiming that the attacks were carried out in retaliation against Israel’s targeting of Sana’a International airport.
The Israeli strikes followed days of Houthi missile and drone launches towards the Jewish state’s airspace. The Houthis have repeatedly attacked the Jewish state in the year following the Oct. 7 slaughters in Israel. Officials associated with terrorist organization claims that it will continue to attack Israel until the so-called “genocide” in Gaza ceases.
In reference to the strikes, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said “the Houthis, too, will learn what Hamas and Hezbollah and Assad’s regime and others learned.”
Israeli officials have long accused the UN of having a bias against the Jewish state. Last year, the UN General Assembly condemned Israel twice as often as it did all other countries. Meanwhile, of all the country-specific resolutions passed by the UNHRC, nearly half have condemned Israel, a seemingly disproportionate focus on the lone democracy in the Middle East.
Weeks following the Oct. 7 attacks by Hamas on Israel, the UN adopted a resolution calling for a “ceasefire” between Israel and the terrorist group. The UN failed to pass a measure condemning the Hamas atrocities of Oct. 7.
In June, the UN put Israel on its so-called “list of shame” of countries that kill children in armed conflict. Israel is considered to be the only democracy on the list.
The post United Nations ‘Condemns’ Israel for Responding to Houthi Attacks, Decries ‘Escalation’ of Violence first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Israeli Jets Attack Syria-Lebanon Border Crossings to Stop Arms Amuggling
Smoke billows after an Israeli Air Force air strike in southern Lebanon village, amid cross-border hostilities between Hezbollah and Israel, as seen from northern Israel, Oct. 3, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Jim Urquhar
Israeli jets struck seven crossing points along the Syria-Lebanon border on Friday, aiming to cut the flow of weapons to the Iranian-backed Hezbollah group in southern Lebanon.
Israeli troops also seized a truck mounted with a 40-barrel rocket launcher in southern Lebanon, part of a haul from various areas that included explosives, rocket-propelled grenade launchers and AK-47 automatic rifles, the military said.
The commander of the Israeli Air Force, Major General Tomer Bar, said Hezbollah was trying to smuggle weapons into Lebanon to test Israel’s ability to stop them.
“This must not be tolerated,” he said in a statement.
Under the terms of a Nov. 27 ceasefire agreement, Israel is supposed to withdraw its troops from southern Lebanon in phases while unauthorised Hezbollah military facilities south of the Litani River are to be dismantled.
However, each side has accused the other of violating the agreement, intended to end more than a year of fighting that began with Hezbollah missile strikes on Israel in the aftermath of the Hamas-led attack of Oct. 7, 2023, from Gaza.
On Thursday, the United Nations peacekeeping force in Lebanon called for Israeli forces to withdraw, citing what it said were repeated violations of the deal.
Israel, which destroyed large parts of Hezbollah’s missile stocks during weeks of operations in southern Lebanon, has said it will not permit weapons to be smuggled to Hezbollah through Syria.
Israel has also conducted attacks against the Iranian-backed Houthi movement in Yemen in recent days and pledged to continue its campaign against Iranian-backed militant groups across the region.
The post Israeli Jets Attack Syria-Lebanon Border Crossings to Stop Arms Amuggling first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Mila Kunis Says Husband Ashton Kutcher And Their Children Helped Her Embrace Judaism: ‘I Fell in Love With My Religion’
Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis at the 9th Annual Breakthrough Prize Ceremony at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in Los Angeles, California, on April 16, 2023. Photo: Cover Media via Reuters Connect
Actress Mila Kunis began embracing and feeling proud of her Jewish heritage when she met her husband, actor Ashton Kutcher, and even more so after having children, she told Israeli activist and author Noa Tishby this week.
“For me, it happened when I met my husband,” the “Goodrich” star, 41, said of her former “That ’70s Show” costar, 46, who she has been married to since 2015.
Although Kutcher is not Jewish, he was a follower of Kabbalah and was frequently photographed visiting the Kabbalah Centre in Los Angeles when he was married to actress Demi Moore from 2005-2013. Their wedding was also reportedly officiated by a Kabbalah Centre teacher. It remains unclear if he continues to follow Kabbalah. Nevertheless, Kunis joked that Kutcher is Jewish “by choice,” not by lineage, and that his interest in Judaism sparked Kunis to reconnect with her Jewish roots.
“I fell in love with my religion because he explained it to me,” said Kunis, who voices Meg Griffin on the Fox animated series “Family Guy.”
Kunis made the comments while joining Tishby to light candles on Thursday for the second night of Hanukkah. The two joined forces as part of Tishby’s “#BringOnTheLight campaign,” which is an eight-part video series on YouTube dedicated to spreading the message of Jewish resilience, pride and unity throughout the Jewish holiday.
Kunis and Kutcher together have two children — daughter Wyatt, 10, and son Dimitri, 8. The actress was born in Chernivtsi, Ukraine, and moved to the United States at the age of eight. She told Tishby that she did not adhere to any Jewish traditions while growing up. “I always knew I was Jewish but I was told to never talk about,” she said. “I think because I was in a country that didn’t allow for religion.” The “Bad Moms” star added that her children also helped her tap into the religious side of Judaism.
“I was raised culturally Jewish. So for me, it’s a culture,” she said. “And as I had kids, and my kids very much identity with the religion aspect of it, I was like, ‘Oh, I guess we’re doing Shabbat and the candles. And there are so many beautiful traditions.”
“I never lit Hanukkah candles until I had kids,” she further noted.
When Kunis lit the menorah with Tishby for the second night of Hanukkah, they called Kutcher for some help. Both women were unsure if they needed to light the candles from left to right or from right to left, and asked Kutcher for guidance.
Kunis also talked about being raised with a lot of Jewish guilt and superstition. Listing another things that are culturally Jewish about her, she shared, “I have a fear of not having enough food and my fear of somebody being hungry. The worst thing my kids can say to me is, ‘I’m hungry.’”
“Food fixes everything. You’re tired, eat some food. You’re cranky, eat some food,” she joked. “A health person would say, ‘This is unhealthy and you’re doing something wrong.’ And I understand. I’m working on it. But it’s just something that is embedded in me.”
The post Mila Kunis Says Husband Ashton Kutcher And Their Children Helped Her Embrace Judaism: ‘I Fell in Love With My Religion’ first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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