Israel's Attorney General warns of democratic decline

Israel's Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara has issued a stark warning about the erosion of democracy within the country, particularly under the current government led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Speaking at a conference for the Israel Bar Association, Baharav-Miara, who also serves as the government's legal advisor, expressed deep concern over the diminishing independence of the judiciary and the executive branch's tendency to ignore court decisions.

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A race has begun to dismantle democratic institutions.

"A race has begun to dismantle democratic institutions," Baharav-Miara stated, referencing the approaching end of the current Knesset's term. She specifically pointed to two bills progressing through the Israeli parliament. One aims to split the attorney general's authority by creating a new position managed by the justice minister, while the other seeks to grant the far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir greater authority over the police force.

The attorney general also condemned what she described as the government's disregard for court rulings. "When the government calls for disobeying court decisions, a day will quickly come when the public will consider court decisions non-binding," she cautioned. This sentiment was partly directed at the government's inaction regarding the conscription of ultra-Orthodox Jewish men into military service, a long-standing issue that the Supreme Court has repeatedly addressed, most recently ruling in 2024 that the government must draft them.

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When the government calls for disobeying court decisions, a day will quickly come when the public will consider court decisions non-binding.

Baharav-Miara noted the legal impossibility of cooperating in a situation where the government increases the burden on those serving while simultaneously allowing widespread draft evasion. Netanyahu's reliance on ultra-Orthodox parties for his governing coalition has complicated efforts to end the exemption from military service for this community.

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Legally, it is impossible to cooperate in a situation where, on the one hand, the government increases the burden on those serving, but on the other hand, allows mass evasion of conscription, and some even encourage it.