Israel's supreme court verdict spells trouble for Benjamin Netanyahu

Israel’s supreme court has overturned a law passed by Benjamin Netanyahu’s government last year that would have limited the power of the Israeli courts. This legislation, known as ‘the reasonableness bill’ was meant to put a stop to the courts’ ability to cancel decisions made by the government if they were deemed to be ‘extremely unreasonable’. Yesterday, judges threw out the law, claiming that the government lacked the authority to implement it.

The law was part of a package of judicial reforms initiated by Netanyahu’s far-right government; many in Israel argued that the reforms would weaken the courts and undermine Israeli democratic institutions. From the moment it was introduced, the proposed legislation ignited mass demonstrations against the government and widespread calls for Netanyahu to resign. Hundreds of thousands took to the streets every week. These only stopped when the war in Gaza started in October, although anti-government protests are now gradually starting up again.