ISRAEL Justice. Herzog attacks (once again) a ‘nightmare’ reform, even for the economy

Harsh intervention by the president against a law that he considers oppressive, harmful and to be archived. We need a shared text, which is being worked on behind the scenes. Ben Gvir ousts Tel Aviv police chief who is too soft on protesters. Netanyahu in Rome applauds the words of the head of state. The flight of technology companies, concerned about the stability of the country.

Jerusalem () – Oppressive, detrimental to democracy, it must be archived immediately to open a true discussion table to draw up a framework law, the result of mediation and based on the consensus of all parties. With an even tougher speech than the previous one, both in form and content, late yesterday afternoon the Israeli president, Isaac Herzog, once again spoke out on the controversial justice reform promoted by the government of Benjamin Netanyahu and which is already being examined by the Knesset and parliamentary committees. The project has triggered a “nightmare” crisis, warns the head of state, which risks undermining the very foundations on which the country rests, although the talks that are taking place behind the scenes to elaborate a shared text offer hope .

In a speech to the nation with strong and serious tones, Herzog stressed that the reform elaborated by the Executive with the purpose of weakening the Judiciary is a “disaster” and a “nightmare.” He then recalled that it is the duty of those who lead the nation to prevent the country from being dragged into a social and constitutional abyss, directly attacking -and for the first time- a well-defined political faction. The president spoke after the “discussions” underway with both fronts, to find an agreement on the issues that are a source of controversy and division, and to draft a final text that will be submitted to the approval of the Knesset to replace the current one.

Herzog’s intervention is related to the acceleration that the government imposed on the approval times of the controversial reform. Indeed, the coalition intends to implement a first part of the reformed text next week, without taking into account the protests in the streets -in which people of different ideologies and political affiliations come together- that continue, and against which the Minister of National Security, Itamar Ben Gvir, calls for a strong hand. He has even come to replace the Tel Aviv police chief, Amichai Eshed, guilty of having so far been too soft on the protesters, who yesterday interrupted the route to the airport for a couple of hours, preventing the prime minister from leaving for Italy. .

Herzog also did not fail to remind the opposition of their institutional duties, putting the country above any partisan interest. The goal of this mediation, he warns, is to prevent Israel from “falling off the cliff” it is facing. One of the first comments on the head of state’s words came from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, on an official visit to Rome, who said that he welcomed “all initiatives” that could lead to a final agreement on common ground. “We must remember – said the prime minister – especially in these days of discussion and debate within Israel, that we are a nation with a common future. We are all brothers and sisters.”

Along with the political and legal aspect, the justice reform could also have strong economic repercussions, which go far beyond the protests. Proof of this is the growing alarm among businessmen and investors, especially in the technology and information technology sectors, who see dark clouds and winds of crisis on the horizon. A 32-year-old cybersecurity entrepreneur told The Times of Israel on condition of anonymity that he regretted starting a company in Israel in recent months and that he is now considering returning to the United States. The political and institutional climate is too uncertain, he warns, to “attract investors from abroad.” The case is not isolated and there is a strong risk of a regression of decades in the country’s technology industry.