Last night (26-27 March) saw mass protests in Israel after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu fired his defence minister after he spoke out against controversial judicial reform plans that have led to weeks of protests.
Gallant had voiced concerns that the divisions in society being caused by the proposed legislation were hurting morale in the military and emboldening Israel’s enemies across the region. "I see how the source of our strength is being eroded," Gallant said.
This led to Netanyahu removing him from his position, saying that "he doesn’t have any faith in him anymore and therefore he is fired."
Meanwhile Israel's President Isaac Herzog addressed Netanyahu, tweeting, "For the sake of the unity of the people of Israel, for the sake of the responsibility we are obliged to, I call on you to stop the legislative process immediately."
What are the judicial reform plans?
The judicial reform plans announced on 4 January would give parliament the authority to override Supreme Court decisions with a basic majority. The plans would also make it very difficult for the courts to declare a prime minister unfit for office and remove them for the courts.
According to those who have taken to the streets, the planned judicial reforms are a plan of Netanyahu to protect himself against a possible court judgement having been on trial for bribery, fraud and breach of trust in three cases since the witnesses testimony began on 5 April 2021.
Netanyahu denies any wrongdoing and argues he is the victim of a "witch hunt".
What happened on Sunday night?
In Jerusalem, police and soldiers used water cannon against demonstrators near Netanyahu's house. After this, the demonstrators then evaded police forces to arrive at Israel's parliament, the Knesset.
In Tel Aviv, flag-waving protesters blocked one of the main highways for more than two hours and lit large bonfires, before they were cleared by mounted police and water cannon.
