AG: ‘Not a warning, but reality – under cover of war, regime change has sped up greatly’
Baharav-Miara declares at Bar Association confab that governance changes already felt, joining Supreme Court head Amit in highlighting erosion of judicial independence
The attorney general warned Monday that the government was rapidly implementing far-reaching changes amounting to “regime change” while the public was distracted by the war in Gaza, joining the nation’s top judge in cautioning against attacks on the independence of the judiciary.
The comments from Gali Baharav-Miara and Supreme Court President Isaac Amit to the annual Israel Bar Association conference were the latest to underline dysfunctional ties between the government and the country’s judicial gatekeepers. Justice Minister Yariv Levin responded by claiming that “sovereignty” was under attack and accusing Amit of a conflict of interests.
Speaking to the lawyers’ convention in the resort city of Eilat, Baharav-Miara accused the government of quietly advancing far-reaching changes to Israel’s form of government, including recently passed legislation that greatly increases the power of politicians in the judicial appointment process.
“Under the cover of war and the diversion of the public’s attention, regime change has sped up greatly,” Baharav-Miara said, using the term to describe Israel’s system of governance. “Contempt and defiance toward the law is happening and being felt.”
“This is not a warning about the future, but a picture of reality. Israel’s form of government is changing in front of our eyes at a rapid pace,” she added.
Both Baharav-Miara and Amit, who addressed the confab before her, took specific aim at legislation passed in March that expands the makeup of the panel charged with choosing new judges, lessening the influence of sitting justices in favor of politicians.
“Diluting the value of professionalism and making political considerations the decisive considerations in the process of selecting judges will change the image of the country as a democracy with an independent judicial system. Perhaps irreversibly,” the attorney general cautioned, predicting that judges seeking promotions would be beholden to political interests.
Tying the legislation to the government’s broader agenda aimed at overhauling the judicial system, Amit defiantly declared that “the attempt to undermine the principle of judicial independence will not succeed.”
He added that Israel’s “democratic fabric” lacked mechanisms such as a constitution or bicameral legislature that could safely keep the branches of government in check.
“Without judicial independence, the judiciary will cease to serve as a balancing factor for the other authorities, and it may become a tool in their hands,” he said.
Responding to Amit specifically, Levin said in a statement to the media that “what is under wild attack is the sovereignty of the people.”
He accused of Amit of violating conflict of interest rules by speaking to the Bar convention while also deliberating on a High Court petition against a law reducing membership dues in the association.
Amit has repeatedly traded barbs with Levin over the minister’s refusal to convene the judge selection panel.
The Supreme Court president said Monday that courts were overburdened and at least 50 judges and magistrates needed to be appointed to deal with the backlog, accusing Levin of continuing to refuse to convene the panel and saying there was no justification for it.
“The justice minister’s avoidance of convening the panel worsens the backlog courts find themselves in, and damages first and foremost the Israeli public,” he charged.
‘Dark shadow’ over Shin Bet chief nomination
Levin is also seeking to fire Baharav-Miara, who has openly criticized parts of the judicial overhaul, with the government saying she is too uncooperative with its policies.
The attorney general told the conference that unresolved disputes with the government had been rare, calling the claim that she did not work well with the political leadership “divorced from reality” while defending her opposition to certain government moves.
“Our professional obligation to help the government realize its policies does not override our responsibility to ensure its action are lawful,” she said.
Nonetheless, Baharav-Miara criticized the recent nomination of Maj. Gen. David Zini to head the Shin Bet security agency. She previously advised Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu against firing now-outgoing Shin Bet head Ronen Bar due to procedural issues and a potential conflict of interest.
“Issues with the nomination process and certainly worries about the influence of outside interests cast a dark shadow on the question of public trust,” she said.
The attorney general also spoke out against Defense Minister Israel Katz’s decision to forbid Military Advocate General Maj. Gen. Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi from participating in the conference.
“Her voice is important,” Baharav-Miara said. “There’s no one more qualified than her to refute claims against Israel in the international arena.”
Katz had claimed that the “politicization” of the conference precluded Tomer-Yerushalmi’s attendance, drawing pushback from both the Israel Defense Forces and Bar Association head Amit Becher.
At the 2024 Bar Association conference, Tomer-Yerushalmi revealed that some 70 probes had been opened into IDF soldiers relating to service in the Gaza Strip amid the war there.
Under rules established by the International Criminal Court, its war crimes probes can only be opened in cases where a country refuses to investigate alleged misdeeds on its own.
The Times of Israel Community.