The Israeli prime minister decided to postpone the official resignation of the defense minister due to the “current security situation,” sources close to Benjamin Netanyahu himself were quoted as saying on Monday by the France-Presse news agency (AFP).
According to the sources, the formalization of the dismissal of Yoav Gallant, announced a week ago by Netanyahu himself and which occurred after the Defense Minister opposed the controversial judicial reform, will soon be considered again.
The sources did not specify what security concerns the prime minister was referring to.
The announcement thus puts an end to doubts about the immediate future of the Defense Minister, after several days of speculation about his situation.
Since Netanyahu announced his resignation, alleging that Gallant had publicly urged the suspension of judicial reform, the still Israeli Defense Minister has not received any official notification and has continued to carry out his duties.
The announcement of the resignation, on March 26, immediately triggered a day of strong protests throughout the country which, added to the general strike, led the prime minister to suspend the reform and enter into negotiations with the opposition.
The confirmation, this Monday, of the continuity in Gallant’s position comes shortly after the Defense Minister warned, on Sunday, that Israel is experiencing moments of “tension on all fronts.”
“The Iranians are extending their reach into Judea and Samaria (the Biblical name for the occupied West Bank) and Gaza, and are trying to entrench themselves in Syria and Lebanon,” Gallant warned.
“We will not allow the Iranians and Hezbollah to harm us. When necessary, we will drive them out of Syria, where they belong, which is Iran,” he added, shortly after Damascus accused Israel of carrying out a missile attack in Syria. Homs province for the third time in four days.
Benny Gantz, former defense minister and current member of the opposition, called on Netanyahu on Monday to confirm Gallant’s mandate.
“Israeli citizens need a permanent defense minister. Not later, now, ”Gantz wrote on his personal Twitter account, after learning of the postponement of Gallant’s resignation.
Another former defense minister and member of the opposition, the ultranationalist Avigdor Liberman, said Monday that Netanyahu “is playing political games” at a time “so delicate for the security” of Israel.
“There is nothing more detrimental to the security apparatus than instability and uncertainty about the identity of a permanent defense minister who focuses solely on security issues,” Liberman defended.
The text, one of the central elements of the judicial reform desired by Netanyahu’s ultra-nationalist and ultra-orthodox government, which seeks to strengthen the power of politicians in the appointment of judges, has already been approved in the first reading in Parliament, but the opposition considers endangering the democratic character of the State of Israel.
Netanyahu and his far-right and ultra-Orthodox allies believe the reform is necessary to restore the balance of power between elected officials and the Supreme Court, which they view as politicized.
On March 23, the Israeli Parliament passed a law protecting Netanyahu from being rejected or found unfit to hold office while he is on trial on various corruption charges.
The law was approved after a long plenary session, with 61 votes in favor and 47 against, after heated discussions about the controversial judicial reform promoted by the Netanyahu government.
The reform has triggered widespread social protest, with demonstrations across the country for almost three months, and is seen as a threat to democracy as it reduces the independence of the judiciary and the supervisory powers of the Supreme Court.
The opposition has raised numerous objections to legislation it describes as “tailor-made” to protect Netanyahu, who has pleaded not guilty to three counts of fraud, bribery and breach of trust.
The legislation explicitly prohibits the Supreme Court from ordering a prime minister to take a “leave of absence”.
Under the new law, only a three-quarters majority of the votes of government ministers, followed by ratification by the same proportion of MPs (at least 90 MPs), can compel a prime minister to take temporary leave, and only for mental reasons. or physical health.
The opposition leader, the centrist Yair Lapid, criticized the passage of the law and the members of the coalition, accusing them of behaving like “thieves in the night” who “passed a personal, obscene and corrupt law against an unfounded rumor of a possible refusal “.
An agreement reached with the Public Ministry in 2020, in the middle of the judicial process, defines that Netanyahu cannot get politically involved in legislation that affects the Judiciary and, therefore, cannot promote or vote on the laws that make up the judicial reform.
Source: TSF
