200,000 Protest Israeli Premier’s Judicial Reforms

By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News

JERUSALEM (Worthy News) – A tense calm returned Sunday after at least 200,000 people protested against judicial reforms backed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in one of the biggest protests in Israel’s history.

However, on Sunday, Israeli troops shot dead three armed Palestinians near the West Bank city of Nablus, the Israeli army said. It said the gunmen had fired at an Israeli army post.

The shooting came as Israel faced its most tense political standoff in years.

Israel’s President Isaac Herzog and opposition leader Yair Lapid demanded that proposed judicial changes be abandoned, while Netanyahu claimed his political opponents are responsible “for stirring backlash.”

Herzog said the current iteration of the reform bill, introduced by a prime minister who is being investigated on corruption charges, is “oppressive.”

RESTORING BALANCE?

Prime Minister Netanyahu says the changes – which would curb the power of courts – will restore the balance between the branches of government.

However, critics say they threaten democracy.

Amid the tensions, Herzog urged “a pause,” enabling parties to find a compromise.

The ongoing protests impacted the prime minister’s travel plans from Rome, Italy, with pilots refusing to fly him and his wife Sara back to Israel over opposition to the coalition’s radical judicial overhaul plan.

Earlier, Netanyahu said he would not change his schedule and fly back early from Italy following an attack in Tel Aviv on Thursday despite protests.

On Thursday, a Palestinian gunman opened fire in Tel Aviv, wounding three people before being killed by police in what Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu labeled a “terror attack” amid rising unrest in the West Bank.

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