Judicial reform is an important issue: Depositphotos
Today, 26 March 2025, National Unity Party leader Benny Gantz met with Israeli Justice Minister Yariv Levin in a last-minute attempt to persuade him to abandon a controversial bill that would significantly increase political influence on the process of appointing judges. This was reported by theYnet news portal .
During the tense conversation, Gantz warned Levin that rash steps in implementing the bill could lead to catastrophic consequences. “Israel is on the brink of civil war,” he said, stressing that the country is already deeply divided. In response, Levin said that his initiative “aims to heal the split in the nation”. According to him, the bill, drafted jointly with Foreign Minister Gideon Saar, is a compromise compared to the previous version, which provided for almost complete coalition control over judicial appointments.
On the eve of the meeting, Gantz sent a letter to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, begging him to intervene and stop the bill from moving forward in the Knesset. “I am addressing you as a person who is responsible for acting on behalf of all citizens of this country,” the National Unity leader wrote. In the letter, he expressed concern that a return to judicial reform, which has already split Israeli society for most of 2023, would be a “betrayal of the people.”
Ganz reminded Netanyahu of the fragile state of the nation: “Society in Israel is more wounded and divided than ever since 6 October 2023. 59 of our citizens are still being held captive in Gaza, and soldiers from all political camps are fighting on multiple fronts.” He warned that reintroducing a controversial reform could destroy national consensus at a time when unity is critical to the country’s survival.
The meeting between Gantz and Levin ended without any visible results, and tensions over the judicial reform continue to grow. Analysts note that further progress on the bill could provoke mass protests and deepen the crisis in Israel, which is already teetering on the brink of internal and external stability.
