Hundreds of thousands of people have taken to the streets in Israel in recent months. The reason: They fear for their democracy. The right-wing religious alliance of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wanted to gain control of the Supreme Court by reforming the judiciary.
Never has a government in Israel been more right-wing
Those plans may now be on hold for the time being. However, the threat to Israel’s rule of law is far from over. Because the threat to democracy does not come from outside, but from within. This time, the conservative Likud party had no choice but to break a taboo in order to regain power. The price tag on Netanyahu’s executive chair is tough: never has an Israeli government been more right-wing, never has an Israeli prime minister been more dependent. In addition to the usual yes-men, true fanatics and convicted criminals cavort in “Bibi’s” rows. A look at some of the more extreme figures among the extremes.
Sources: “Al Jazeera“; “Middle East Eye; “J Street“; “Times of Israel“; BBC; DPA.