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Basic Laws

Combat veterans suffering from PTSD react during a House Committee hearing on the so-called Torah Study bill, at the Knesset on July 9, 2026. Yitzhak Goldknopf is seated with back to camera. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
July 9, 2026, 9:17 pm
Haredi parties give a little ground: Basic Law won’t explicitly put Torah study on par with IDF service
Bill advances in 6-4 committee vote, with final Knesset readings slated for next week; combat veterans with PTSD interrupt hearing: ‘You’ve exploited us for political gain; rebel Likud MK: ‘Compromise’ is mere ‘window dressing’
By Ariela Karmel
Itzik Saidyan (center) appears at a Knesset House Committee meeting in the Knesset on July 5, 2026. (Noam Moskowitz/Knesset Spokesman's Office)
July 6, 2026, 12:43 am
IDF veteran who self-immolated begs Knesset: Prioritize combat soldiers, not Torah study
Addressing debate on Basic Law to declare Torah study foundational value, Itzik Saidyan says highest priority must be ‘the ones who go into battle… who feel forgotten’
By Stav Levaton and ToI Staff
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (left) speaks to United Torah Judaism lawmakers Moshe Gafni (right) and Yitzhak Goldknopf in the Knesset plenum in Jerusalem, July 1, 2026. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
July 2, 2026, 1:22 am
Contentious Basic Law on Torah study, aimed at shielding draft evaders, passes 1st reading
Four coalition MKs vote against legislation, which has been sharply criticized by legal authorities; opposition politicians vow to cancel law if they form next government
By Ariela Karmel
Supreme Court President Isaac Amit presides over a hearing for petitions demanding that a law politicizing the judicial appointments process be struck down, June 21, 2026. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
June 21, 2026, 8:23 pm
‘Regime change’: High Court tears into coalition bid to control judicial appointments
‘Judges will have political chip implanted in their body,’ warns court president Amit, but some conservative justices question wisdom of intervening
By Jeremy Sharon
Justice Minister Yariv Levin at the annual Jerusalem Conference of the 'Besheva' group in Jerusalem, February 16, 2026. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
February 17, 2026, 10:01 am
Levin refuses to say he’d obey court order to convene Judicial Selection Committee
High Court has ordered justice minister to explain refusal to convene the panel for past year, despite dozens of vacancies
By Jeremy Sharon and ToI Staff
Justice Minister Yariv Levin (right) and Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar (left) discuss their new proposals for an overhaul of the judicial appointments process and other aspects of Israel’s constitutional order. (Screenshot from video courtesy of Justice Minister Yariv Levin (right) and Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar)
January 10, 2025, 5:10 pm
Overhaul redux: Levin’s ‘compromise’ proposal would again radically constrain the judiciary
The coalition won’t be able to appoint judges by itself but judge selection would be highly politicized, Basic Laws would be immune from judicial review and other laws hard to block
By Jeremy Sharon
The United States Consulate in Jerusalem, March 4, 2019. (Ariel Schalit/AP)
October 29, 2024, 10:14 pm
Knesset passes law banning establishment of new foreign consulates in Jerusalem
Government to push for building embassies in capital, legislation won’t affect status of existing consulates in city; ‘Jerusalem is the core of our sovereignty,’ law’s sponsor says
By Sam Sokol
Illustrative: Then-Supreme Court Chief of Justice Ester Hayut and Supreme court justices at a court hearing in the Supreme Court in Jerusalem, October 6, 2022. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
January 8, 2024, 2:46 pm
Will the High Court rulings against the judicial overhaul become a permanent revolution?
Landmark decisions last week placed constraints on the Knesset’s authority over Israel’s constitutional identity, but it is not legal arguments alone that powered the shift
By Jeremy Sharon
The High Court of Justice hears petitions against the government's incapacitation law, September 28, 2023. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)
January 3, 2024, 11:34 pm
Ministers slam High Court for delaying recusal law; one calls decision ‘null and void’
Decision to push off implementation of bill shielding PM from being ordered to recuse himself from office highlights ‘urgent need’ for judicial reform, says justice minister
By Sam Sokol and Jeremy Sharon
President of the Supreme Court Esther Hayut and justices at a High Court of Justice hearing on petitions against the government's recusal law at the Supreme Court in Jerusalem, September 28, 2023. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)
January 3, 2024, 11:34 pm
High Court delays implementation of PM recusal law, in 2nd gov’t defeat this week
Justices rule 6-5 that law shielding Netanyahu from being ordered to recuse himself due to conflict of interest is personal in nature, and can only be applied after next elections
By Jeremy Sharon
Supreme Court President Esther Hayut and all 14 other judges hear petitions against the 'reasonableness law' at the court in Jerusalem on September 12, 2023. (DEBBIE HILL / POOL / AFP)
December 28, 2023, 12:35 am
Bombshell leaked draft ruling shows High Court set to nix key judicial overhaul law
Historic 15-justice panel reportedly split 8-7 in favor of nullifying reasonableness law; judiciary slams leak, says ruling still being written; coalition MKs pan brewing decision
By Jeremy Sharon and Michael Bachner
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu raises a toast at the weekly cabinet meeting ahead of the Jewish New Year, September 10, 2023. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)
September 27, 2023, 2:20 pm
Sequel to constitutional showdown pits government against court on PM recusal law
Petitioners and attorney general argue that law blocking High Court from removing an incapacitated premier from office is unfit to be part of Israel’s constitutional arrangement
By Jeremy Sharon
Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara attends a conference in Tel Aviv, July 5, 2022. (Avshalom Sassoni/Flash90/File)
September 18, 2023, 9:33 pm
AG to court: Delay recusal law implementation so it doesn’t apply to Netanyahu
Baharav-Miara says Basic Laws ‘cannot be used as a private resource to remove personal problems from one’s path’
By Jeremy Sharon
Israeli Justice Minister Yariv Levin attends the weekly cabinet meeting at the Prime Minister's Office in Jerusalem, March 5, 2023. (Gil Cohen-Magen/Pool via AP)
September 14, 2023, 2:34 pm
Daily Briefing Sept 14: Yariv Levin’s mic drop before next week’s High Court showdown
Zman Yisrael editor Biranit Goren and senior analyst Haviv Rettig Gur grapple with what the justice minister’s endgame is and the need for a constitution to teach us how to play it
By ToI Staff
President of the Supreme Court Esther Hayut and Supreme Court justices at the High Court in Jerusalem hear petitions against the so-called 'Tiberias law,' on July 30, 2023. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
September 11, 2023, 5:17 pm
Court set for fateful ‘reasonableness’ law hearing as constitutional showdown looms
Petitioners claim legislation undermines democracy; government insists court has no right to intervene. High Court justices may decide time is not ripe for such a charged decision
By Jeremy Sharon
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