WITH the parliamentary opposition in Israel hopelessly splintered, demoralised and without an agreed leader, it has fallen mainly to Israel’s fiercely independent Supreme Court and its combative media to hold the government of Binyamin Netanyahu to account. No wonder both institutions have been in its crosshairs for years. With four justices reaching the mandatory retirement age of 70 this year, it has had a rare opportunity to influence the court’s make-up.
On February 22nd the justice minister, Ayelet Shaked (pictured), took full advantage of this opportunity. A former aide of Mr Netanyahu and now one of the leaders of the right-wing Jewish Home party, she has been spearheading the campaign for a more conservative Supreme Court. The Judicial Appointments Committee, which she chairs, approved the four new Supreme Court justices. Two of them are religious Orthodox Jews (one of whom lives in a West Bank settlement); another has close ties with right-wing politicians; and the fourth, a Christian who fills the court’s Arab seat, is known for usually siding with the state prosecution.
The appointments came after months of deadlock...Continue reading
Source: Middle East and Africa http://ift.tt/2kV6m7i
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