🔶 Political controversy in Israel after the government’s refusal to comply with a Supreme Court ruling After the Israeli government announced on Sunday, July 5 (14 Tir), that for the first time it does not intend to carry out a ruling issued by the Supreme Court of Justice last month, the president, the attorney general, and leaders of opposition parties sharply criticized the decision. In their view, this move places Israel on the brink of a constitutional crisis and the possibility of legal chaos. Members of Israel’s cabinet voted on Sunday to refuse to comply with the country’s Supreme Court ruling regarding the body overseeing audio-visual media; a step that has increased concerns about a constitutional crisis. This is the first time that Benjamin Netanyahu’s government, the Israeli prime minister, has refused to implement a Supreme Court ruling, though the government has previously also had differences with the judiciary. After the 2022 election, the government tried to limit the Supreme Court’s powers; a move that faced widespread international criticism and large-scale protests in Israel. The judicial reforms were halted after the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, though since then some parts of them have been revived again. Gali Baharav-Miara, Israel’s attorney general, described the government’s statement as “another serious attempt to neutralize rulings issued by the Supreme Court... and to intimidate anyone who seeks to implement these rulings or rely on them.” She added that the statement “undermines the fundamental principles of the rule of law.” So far, Netanyahu’s government has unsuccessfully tried to remove this attorney general. As part of its plans to weaken the judiciary, the government has also sought to limit the authority of the attorney general’s position.