JERUSALEM: Israel's parliament on Tuesday advanced a bill that would let lawmakers pass laws that the Supreme Court cannot overturn — a key piece of legislation in Benjamin Netanyahu and his allies' proposed judicial overhaul that has divided the country.
Netanyahu's governing coalition of ultranationalist and ultra-Orthodox parties has pressed ahead with its legislative blitz despite calls for compromise and demonstrations that have drawn tens of thousands of Israelis to the streets over the past two months.
In an overnight session that stretched into the early morning, the Knesset gave initial approval to several pieces of legislation, including a bill protecting the prime minister from being declared unfit for office, or incapacitated, and another to allow settlements in the northern West Bank.
A third piece of legislation that was approved would let parliament pass laws impervious to judicial review, with a simple majority of 61 members in Israel's 120-seat parliament, the Knesset.
Each of the bills require additional votes before being enshrined into law.
The steps were the latest in a series of moves by Netanyahu’s coalition to overhaul Israel’s legal system. The prime minister and his allies say the effort is aimed at reining in an activist court. Critics say the drive would upend the country’s democratic checks and balances, defang the Supreme Court, and concentrate power in the hands of Netanyahu and his parliamentary majority.
Business leaders, legal experts and retired military leaders have joined the protests against the judicial overhaul, and Israeli reservists have threatened to stop reporting for duty if the overhaul passes.
Netanyahu returned to power in December, following the country's fifth election in under four years, at the head of Israel's most ultranationalist and religious government to date. He is currently on trial for fraud, breach of trust, and accepting bribes, charges he denies.
In a late-night vote, the Knesset moved forward a bill that would protect Netanyahu from calls to oust him, replacing current law that opens the door for a leader to be removed under other circumstances. The new bill would require approval by three-quarters of the government, and could be overridden by the prime minister.
The measure has personal importance to Netanyahu, who returned to power late last year after Israel's fifth election in under four years. He is on trial on charges of fraud, breach of trust and accepting bribes, and denies the allegations. The proceedings have dragged on for nearly three years.
Good governance groups and other critics have called on the country's attorney general to deem Netanyahu unfit for office.
Speaking to members of his Likud party on Monday, Netanyahu lashed out at the Israeli media, saying they are broadcasting a "never-ending tsunami of fake news" against him. He reiterated his claim that the legal overhaul will strengthen Israeli democracy.
Meanwhile, Opposition lawmaker Orna Barbivai said the bill was "a disgrace, which says the prime minister is above the law."
Israel's Palestinian minority, which makes up some 20 per cent of the population, has been largely absent from the protests, in part because they suffer from discrimination in Israel and because of Israel's treatment of their Palestinian brethren in the West Bank and Gaza.