Israel

27 Mar 2023; MEMO: Scores have taken to the streets of Israel, regardless of their political alignments, although Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, heading arguably the most far-right government in the country's history, seemingly backed down and halted on Monday the controversial judicial reform package, Anadolu News Agency reports.

27 Mar 2023; MEMO: Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu's coalition plunged into chaos on Monday, after mass overnight protests over the sacking of his Defence Chief piled pressure on the government to halt its bitterly contested plans to overhaul the judiciary, Reuters reports.

JERUSALEM, March 27 (Reuters) - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's religious-nationalist coalition government on Monday survived no-confidence motions filed by the opposition in protest over its judicial overhaul plan.

One motion failed by a vote of 59-53, a second by a vote of 60-51, the Knesset speaker said.

TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — Israel’s largest trade union group launched a strike across a broad swath of sectors Monday, joining a surging protest movement against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s plan to overhaul the judiciary — a plan that is facing unprecedented opposition.

The strike by the Histadrut umbrella group, which represents nearly 800,000 workers in health, transit and banking, among many other fields, could paralyze large parts of Israel’s economy, which is already on shaky ground, ratcheting up the pressure on Netanyahu to suspend the overhaul.

JERUSALEM, March 26 (Reuters) - A top lawmaker from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud party echoed on Sunday a call by the defence chief to pause a contested judicial overhaul, and raised the possibility that the government's parliamentary majority could be eroded.

Dissent from the premier's own party and cabinet has compounded months of unprecedented mass protests by Israelis who fear the package of reforms could endanger court independence.

25 Mar 2023; MEMO: Senior Israeli army officials have warned of a major crisis in light of "tangible threats of multi-front escalation," Akka news website reported on Friday.

26 Mar 2023; MEMO: Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant on Saturday called on the government to halt legislation on changes to the judiciary, saying the bitter dispute over the measures poses a danger to national security, Reuters reports.

"The deepening split is seeping into the military and security agencies – this is a clear, immediate and real danger to Israel's security. I will not facilitate this," Gallant said in a brief televised statement.

26 Mar 2023; MEMO: A top lawmaker from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud party echoed on Sunday a call by the defence chief to pause a contested judicial overhaul, and raised the possibility that the government's parliamentary majority could be eroded, Reuters reports.

Dissent from the premier's own party and cabinet has compounded months of unprecedented mass protests by Israelis who fear the package of reforms could endanger court independence.

TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — Israeli officials said Sunday the United Arab Emirates has pardoned an Israeli woman after initially sentencing her to death for drug possession, a case that tested the nascent ties between the two countries.

Fida Kiwan was arrested in early 2021 with half a kilogram (over 1 pound) of cocaine that she claimed did not belong to her, Israeli media reported. The UAE, which has harsh drug laws, later commuted the death sentence to life in prison.

TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — An Israeli good governance group on Sunday asked the country’s Supreme Court to punish Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for allegedly violating a conflict of interest agreement meant to prevent him from dealing with the country’s judiciary while he is on trial for corruption.

The request by the Movement for Quality Government in Israel intensifies a brewing showdown between Netanyahu’s government and the judiciary, which it is trying to overhaul in a contentious plan that has sparked widespread opposition.