Immediately after his return from the United States, Herzog drove to Netanyahu’s hospital, where he is currently recovering from heart surgery. Herzog then met with opposition leader Jair Lapid, and later he would also meet with opposition leader Benny Gantz. At first, Herzog’s office did not give any details about the content of the talks with the three politicians.
Lapid had previously said during a debate in the Knesset, the Israeli parliament: “We want to continue to live in a Jewish and democratic state. We will not give up our children’s future.”
Former defense secretary Gantz, for his part, called for dialogue on Sunday, saying that “we can come to an agreement, but we have to stop legislation on this measure” ahead of a crucial vote on a key element of judicial reform scheduled for Monday.
The second and third reading of the so-called adequacy clause is scheduled to be voted on in the Knesset on Monday. If MPs pass the bill, they could remove the Supreme Court’s ability to declare government decisions “inappropriate” and overrule them. The clause is therefore one of the most controversial elements of judicial reform.
Critics fear that high-ranking government posts will be filled arbitrarily and that corruption will be fostered. Specifically, they suspect Netanyahu, who is the subject of corruption proceedings, of wanting to avert his conviction.
The judicial reform is dividing the Israeli population, and people across the country have been protesting against the project for 29 weeks. Tens of thousands of opponents of the project also protested in Jerusalem on Sunday evening. In Tel Aviv, on the other hand, supporters of the reform plans of the right-wing religious government gathered.
The plans aim to reduce the powers of the judiciary and the supreme court and strengthen the powers of parliament and the prime minister. Critics fear for democracy in Israel as a result of the weakening of the judiciary. Proponents, on the other hand, argue that the balance in the separation of powers should be restored.
