Addressing an educational conference in Tel Aviv, Herzog said, “the lack of dialogue is tearing us apart from the inside, and I tell you clearly: this barrel of explosives is on the verge of exploding. This is an emergency, and the responsibility lies on us.”
The new government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu recently unveiled plans to reform Israel’s judicial system. The proposals include a controversial “judicial override” clause, a process that would allow the Knesset to enact certain laws even if the High Court of Justice rules them unconstitutional.
Supporters of the reforms say they want to end years of judicial overreach while opponents describe the proposals as anti-democratic.
“I observe Israeli society, the citizens, and the political and public system. I see the camps prepared and ready along the entire front for an all-out confrontation over the image of the State of Israel, and I am anxious that we are on the brink of an internal struggle that could end us,” Herzog said.
Herzog described the reforms as “dramatic,” then said, “My firm position, which I have already expressed, is that the foundations of Israeli democracy – including the legal system, and rights And the freedoms of man and citizen – they are sacred; and we must guard them – and the values of the Declaration of Independence – with every vigilance.”
“But by talking. By listening. Without dismantling our foundations, without throwing the baby out with the bathwater, without undermining the infrastructure we built with so much effort.”
Photo by Gideon Markowicz/TPS