The Future Of Democracy In Israel

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🗓️ 3 April 2023

⏱️ 38 minutes

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Summary

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has delayed the planned overhaul of the country's judicial system, but his people are still taking to the streets in protest.

The government's plans to weaken Israel's supreme court have been subject to months-long demonstrations and general strikes. Most recently, walkouts across several industries closed Israel's schools and airports for a day.

The move to suspend the legislation comes after Netanyahu fired Israel's head defense official, Yoav Gallant, for advocating against the legislation.

Now, Netanyahu's party is in talks with the opposition, with hopes of reaching a compromise.

With the clocking ticking for a resolution, we look at the country's national security and foreign relations hanging in the balance We discuss what Netanyahu plans to do next.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has delayed implementing a series of measures
0:11.6	that would drastically overhaul the country's Supreme Court.
0:14.7	But Israelis continue to protest in the streets.
0:19.2	Well, the demonstrations have been growing since January, when Netanyahu proposed sweeping
0:25.9	changes, and a week ago, they reached a fever pitch and led to the shutdown of the nation's
0:31.0	schools and airports.
0:32.8	Now, Netanyahu's coalition is in talks with the opposition to try to reach a compromise.
0:37.8	But there is mounting pressure from all sides, including liberal secular Israelis, far-right
0:42.3	sympathizers, members of the military, and from the United States.
0:46.5	Most recently, the Israeli Cabinet has authorized a 2,000-person National Guard to deal with
0:51.3	unrest in Palestinian communities in Israel.
0:54.3	It will soon determine whether the force will be commanded by far-right National Security
0:57.9	Minister Idemar Ben-Govir.
1:00.1	How will Prime Minister Netanyahu proceed?
1:01.8	And what does the future of democracy in Israel look like?
1:04.9	We'll get into all that and more after the break.
1:07.5	I'm David Gura, InfraGen White.
1:09.3	You're listening to the 1A podcast where we get to the heart of the story.
1:12.6	We'll be back with more in just a moment.
1:14.2	Let's get into the conversation by welcoming our first guest.
1:22.8	Joining us now is Michael Brenner.
1:24.3	He's the director of the Center for Israel Studies at American University.
	...

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