Levin says Supreme Court decisions ‘have nothing to do with the law,’ slams planned ‘extremist’ conference

Justice Minister Yariv Levin claims that decisions made by the Supreme Court are all political, motivated by “extremist” positions, and “have nothing to do with the law,” the latest attack on the court from the cabinet.

In a tirade against the court and the larger Israel Courts Administration, Levin denounced a seminar set to be held in the Supreme Court building in January entitled “Educating for Democracy” as an “extremist political conference,” since the two speakers at the event are both politically left-wing, according to the justice minister.

The event is set to be staged by the Israel Courts Heritage Museum, located in the Supreme Court building, with Supreme Court President Isaac Amit and his predecessor Esther Hayut there. Amit will deliver opening remarks.

One of the speakers is Asa Kasher, a renowned Israeli philosopher and Israel Prize laureate who authored the IDF’s code of conduct.

Levin noted that Kasher has said that it was “impossible to bear the Haredi dictatorship” and described the Haredi community as “an economic parasite,” remarks that Levin said were “racist” and constitute “incitement.”

The second speaker is Uki Maroshek-Klarman, executive director of the Adam Institute for Democracy and Peace, whom Levin denounced for what he said were her associations with left-wing organizations, as well as for sharing posts denouncing Israeli military action in Gaza that harmed civilians and calling for military service refusal during the war against Hamas.

“The majority of Israeli citizens today understand that the decisions of the Supreme Court are made from a political place, are motivated by an extremist worldview, and have nothing to do with the law,” charged Levin.

He denounced the court for excluding right-wing voices from the “extremist conference,” and called on the Court’s Administration to cancel the event.

The Judicial Authority rejected Levin’s characterization of the seminar as political as “a false and misleading claim.” It pointed out that the Adam Institute was recognized as an educational institution by the Education Ministry, and said the seminar “aims to educate for shared values ​​and deepen understanding of the fundamental principles on which the State of Israel is based as a democratic state.”