Palestinians nervously observing Israeli anti-Netanyahu demonstrations
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Hashim Sheikh
- . March 6, 2023
- . Update: March 7, 2023 12:27 am
The increase of the furious mass demonstrations by Israelis is being closely watched by Palestinians in Israel and the occupied territories.
As the government moves through with the proposed changes, tens of thousands of Israelis are protesting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s divisive plan to overhaul the nation’s court system.
The demonstrators oppose legislation that Netanyahu and his right-wing and religious supporters want to adopt because it would give lawmakers the last say in selecting justices while limiting the Supreme Court’s ability to decide against the legislature and administration.
Advocates of the action argue that the Supreme Court has to be restrained from encroaching too far into politics. But, the plan’s detractors contend that it will weaken the judiciary, jeopardise civil freedoms, hurt the economy, and damage Israel’s relations with its Western friends.
While others are excited about the protests and support them, some Palestinians are apprehensive because the extreme right-wing Israeli government’s policies are tied to judicial reforms and could damage their political and existential future.
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Others contend that since the protests are an Israeli internal matter, Israel should not be concerned.
Nonetheless, as they are under Israeli occupation, most Palestinians concur that everything that occurs in Israeli politics directly impacts them, whether it be in the areas of security, life, the economy, or even politics.
Esmat Mansour, a Palestinian expert on Israeli affairs, told Arab News that a significant portion of the reforms that are planned to be implemented will undermine the Israeli judiciary, which is where Palestinians can file complaints and appeals against the Israeli occupation’s policies against them.
The Israeli Supreme Court might overturn some of the laws passed by the Knesset (Israel’s parliament) and the military actions made by the Israeli army against Palestinians in the occupied areas, he added.
Most Palestinians lack faith in the Israeli judicial system and are reluctant to take the occupation’s actions against them to court there.
According to Mansour, the 1993 deportation of several Palestinians to Marj Al-Zuhur in Lebanon was halted by Israel’s Supreme Court.
The Israeli demonstrations “give the Palestinians some hope that there are individuals in Israel who reject the annexation of the West Bank and the death of the two-state solution,” a second Palestinian analyst said, concurring with the first.
Another observer claimed that the Supreme Court had previously reacted to a Palestinian petition requesting the return of Palestinian bodies Israel had been holding and the deportation of Palestinians to other countries.
Although their internal conflicts have nothing to do with our situation or our future, a senior Fatah leader who wished to remain unnamed told Arab News: “We do not want to participate in their internal disagreements. The Israeli Supreme Court was established to offer defence for the atrocities the occupation committed against our people.
