Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu agreed Monday evening to pause a divisive plan to overhaul Israel’s judicial system until the next parliament session after widespread unrest.
As unprecedented strikes gripped Israel, Netanyahu said he was postponing voting on the judicial overhaul to allow time to reach a consensus.
“I will turn every stone in order to find a solution,” he said in a televised address. “We are in the height of the crisis that is threatening our basic unity.”
But he maintained that the overhaul was still needed.
“A large majority of the public today recognizes the necessity of democratic reform in the judicial system,” he said.
Netanyahu spoke after a paralyzing day in which hundreds of thousands of people refused to work to protest the government’s proposal. The general strike was called off after his speech.
Netanyahu changed his plans after National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, the leader of the far-right Jewish Power party, who had been a major hurdle to postponing the vote, said he would agree to delay it.
A national guard under Ben-Gvir’s ministry will be established as part of the agreement, his party said in a statement.
“I agreed to remove the veto for the postponement of the legislation, in exchange for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s commitment that the legislation will be brought to the Knesset for approval in the next session,” said Ben-Gvir, an ultranationalist.
President Isaac Herzog, who was among those who called for the changes to be halted, praised the decision and urged protesters on both sides not to resort to violence.
“This is the time to begin a sincere, serious and responsible dialogue that will urgently calm the waters and lower the flames,” he said.
Unrest broke out Sunday night after Netanyahu fired Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, who became the first member of his Likud Party to speak out against the proposed changes. Gallant had warned that divisions over the plans threatened Israel’s security.
“I welcome the decision to stop the legislation in favor of negotiations,” Gallant tweeted Monday evening.
The proposal by Netanyahu’s hard-right coalition in January would threaten the independence of the Supreme Court and limit judges’ powers, critics say. It has faced stiff opposition, with Israelis regularly taking to the streets to demonstrate.
Earlier Monday, Israel’s largest trade union called for a general strike, which halted medical services to flights to meals served by McDonald’s restaurants.
Before the proposal was paused, large crowds of protesters and counterprotesters gathered in the shadow of the Supreme Court in Jerusalem, many waving Israeli flags. Some chanted into megaphones or banged on drums.
Leah Basa, 23, said she felt Netanyahu’s plan would lead to the “downfall of democracy.”
“I’m protesting the reform which is going to get rid of the checks and balances and get rid of the separation of powers,” she said. “I think that it is causing so many rips in society. No matter which side wins, nobody is going to win in the end, because whether the reform passes or doesn’t both sides just hate each other so much.”
Salome Dunaevsky, 57, said she felt Netanyahu’s plan would cause chaos.
“It gives total power, almost total power, to the politicians,” she said. “It means that there is no rule. You can do whatever.
