Gantz slams ‘reckless’ government attempts to restart judicial overhaul, fire AG

The government’s efforts to revive its judicial overhaul program and fire the attorney general are reckless behavior that endangers the security of the state, former war cabinet minister Benny Gantz declares, calling on Justice Minister Yariv Levin to back down.

Addressing reporters ahead of his National Unity party’s weekly faction meeting in the Knesset, Gantz says that Levin “has not yet learned anything” from the events of October 7 and “we will all regret it if we do not learn the lesson.”

“Mr. Prime Minister, coalition leaders, do not take us back to October 6. We paid such a heavy price for it,” he declares.

Turning to Sunday’s meeting of coalition party leaders on the topics of firing Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara and reviving the government’s judicial overhaul agenda, Gantz says that while they were meeting “to discuss the coup,” he was contacted by the head of a local authority in the north who complained that it was “more difficult for him to deal with the bureaucracy of government ministries than with Hezbollah fire.”

The government needs to sit down to deal with that, “instead of holding discussions on how to dismantle the state,” he continues.

Gantz notes that on Sunday evening, Israeli Navy Vice Admiral (res.) Eliezer Marom announced his resignation from the role of overseer of the rehabilitation of the northern communities harmed amid fighting against Hezbollah, and “you are busy firing the attorney general?” he asks.

He asserts that when a state commission of inquiry is finally established it will discover that Hamas chose October 7 to attack because it saw that the overhaul had frayed Israeli society and weakened its government.

“Repeating the same mistake is absolute recklessness. Coalition members, do not weaken Israel,” he urges.

On the issue of a hostage deal, Gantz says that Israel must secure the release of all of the captives in Hamas hands at once rather than through a phased deal.