Investors and lawyers in Israel are weighing up their next steps as they fret over parliament passing a bill that will weaken the power of judges.
The shekel fell after the bill was easily passed in the Knesset, with opposition politicians boycotting the vote. The currency has weakened by 0.9 per cent to 3.69 per dollar this week, the worst performance among a basket of major units tracked by Bloomberg.
Israeli stocks dropped 2.2 per cent on Monday. They’re still up 4.4 per cent this year, but that’s far less than US equities or the MSCI World Index.
On Monday, despite widespread anger and thousands taking to the streets in protest, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s right-wing coalition scrapped a law allowing judges to void ministerial decisions they consider “unreasonable”.
While the government and its supporters say the move will help prevent judicial abuse, opponents fear for the economy and Israel’s status as a magnet for technology investments. The White House was also critical.
There were further protests on Tuesday morning. Some doctors went on strike, with little sign of demonstrations, which have rocked the country since Mr Netanyahu unveiled plans to overhaul the judiciary early this year, abating.
“We’re entering a twilight zone,” said Elah Alkalay, head of corporate responsibility at Tel Aviv’s IBI Investment House.
“The rules of the game should be fixed and clear. Now they will be at the mercy of politicians.”
IBI was one of 150 major companies that went on strike on Monday to express their opposition to the bill.
Mr Alkalay, along with numerous other business people, say they are afraid of more populist moves by the coalition.
The government says the reasonableness law is just the first step. It wants to increase the ability of politicians to select judges and make it harder for the Supreme Court to overturn legislation.
Mr Netanyahu tried to placate opponents late on Monday, saying he was prepared to “discuss everything” and wait until November before trying to pass more legislation.
“Anyone who believes in a free market should be anxious now for Israel’s economy,” said Ranen Cohen-Orgad, co-chief executive of Leader Capital Markets, which joined in the strike.
“Gatekeepers draw their strength from regulatory certainty.”
Yaniv Pagot, who heads trading at the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange, said he’s worried about Israel’s credit rating, which could stop the recent positive trend in the local bond market. Moody’s Investors Service rates the government’s debt A1, the fifth-highest level.
“The next few days will be a test,” he said.
Not every investor is pessimistic. Michael Fertik, founder of Heroic Ventures and a Silicon Valley-based entrepreneur, said he considers much of the reaction to be pure hysteria.
“This is actually the best time to invest in Israeli start-ups,” he said.
“There are two important things: the first is that Israel still has more great entrepreneurs than ever. The second is that when everyone is afraid, it’s the best time to invest.”
Protests and occasional strikes are expected to continue in the coming weeks. There is concern among the professional classes that Mr Netanyahu is trying to appease the far-right parties he brought into his coalition when he took power in late 2022. Some protesters also say the law changes will help him fight charges of bribery and fraud, something which Mr Netanyahu denies as well as the charges themselves.
Thousands of military reservists have threatened they’ll no longer volunteer for duty, with some saying they now question the country’s values., at a time of growing tensions with Iran and its proxies.
The new law voiding reasonableness has already been sent to the Supreme Court for appeal. It will take some time before judges announce whether they accept it. Many scholars, including law Prof Yuval Shany at Jerusalem’s Hebrew University, assume they will.
Prof Shany expects, though, the judges to weigh in on how the law should function, perhaps suggesting limits. They probably won’t issue an injunction in the meantime, the scholars say, meaning it will likely go into effect immediately.
“This could take months and the government will be free to conduct itself without the oversight that reasonableness has afforded until now,” said Yohanan Plesner, president of the non-profit Israel Democracy Institute, which has opposed the law.
Critics of the coalition fear its members may try to fire top legal advisers, including the attorney general, Gali Baharav-Miara. Some of her decisions, including ordering Mr Netanyahu to recuse himself from parliamentary debates over the judiciary while he faces corruption charges, have angered the prime minister and his allies.
Such “gatekeeper” officials were afforded protection by the reasonableness law, according to Mr Plenser.
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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FFP EXPLAINED
What is Financial Fair Play?
Introduced in 2011 by Uefa, European football’s governing body, it demands that clubs live within their means. Chiefly, spend within their income and not make substantial losses.
What the rules dictate?
The second phase of its implementation limits losses to €30 million (Dh136m) over three seasons. Extra expenditure is permitted for investment in sustainable areas (youth academies, stadium development, etc). Money provided by owners is not viewed as income. Revenue from “related parties” to those owners is assessed by Uefa's “financial control body” to be sure it is a fair value, or in line with market prices.
What are the penalties?
There are a number of punishments, including fines, a loss of prize money or having to reduce squad size for European competition – as happened to PSG in 2014. There is even the threat of a competition ban, which could in theory lead to PSG’s suspension from the Uefa Champions League.
TOP%2010%20MOST%20POLLUTED%20CITIES
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Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week
The specs: 2018 Mercedes-AMG C63 S Cabriolet
Price, base: Dh429,090
Engine 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8
Transmission Seven-speed automatic
Power 510hp @ 5,500rpm
Torque 700Nm @ 1,750rpm
Fuel economy, combined 9.2L / 100km
MATCH INFO
Inter Milan 1 (Martinez 18' pen)
Juventus 2 (Dybala 4', Higuain 80')
More on Quran memorisation:
Result
UAE (S. Tagliabue 90 1') 1-2 Uzbekistan (Shokhruz Norkhonov 48', 86')
'Gehraiyaan'
Director:Shakun Batra
Stars:Deepika Padukone, Siddhant Chaturvedi, Ananya Panday, Dhairya Karwa
Rating: 4/5
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Grubtech
Founders: Mohamed Al Fayed and Mohammed Hammedi
Launched: October 2019
Employees: 50
Financing stage: Seed round (raised $2 million)
Volvo ES90 Specs
Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)
Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp
Torque: 480Nm, 670Nm, 870Nm
On sale: Later in 2025 or early 2026, depending on region
Price: Exact regional pricing TBA
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How to wear a kandura
Dos
- Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
- Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
- Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
- Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester
Don’ts
- Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
- Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying
The specs
Engine: 8.0-litre, quad-turbo 16-cylinder
Transmission: 7-speed auto
0-100kmh 2.3 seconds
0-200kmh 5.5 seconds
0-300kmh 11.6 seconds
Power: 1500hp
Torque: 1600Nm
Price: Dh13,400,000
On sale: now
The biog
Name: Abeer Al Shahi
Emirate: Sharjah – Khor Fakkan
Education: Master’s degree in special education, preparing for a PhD in philosophy.
Favourite activities: Bungee jumping
Favourite quote: “My people and I will not settle for anything less than first place” – Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid.
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
The specs
Engine: 3.8-litre twin-turbo flat-six
Power: 650hp at 6,750rpm
Torque: 800Nm from 2,500-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch auto
Fuel consumption: 11.12L/100km
Price: From Dh796,600
On sale: now
Tips from the expert
Dobromir Radichkov, chief data officer at dubizzle and Bayut, offers a few tips for UAE residents looking to earn some cash from pre-loved items.
- Sellers should focus on providing high-quality used goods at attractive prices to buyers.
- It’s important to use clear and appealing photos, with catchy titles and detailed descriptions to capture the attention of prospective buyers.
- Try to advertise a realistic price to attract buyers looking for good deals, especially in the current environment where consumers are significantly more price-sensitive.
- Be creative and look around your home for valuable items that you no longer need but might be useful to others.
The more serious side of specialty coffee
While the taste of beans and freshness of roast is paramount to the specialty coffee scene, so is sustainability and workers’ rights.
The bulk of genuine specialty coffee companies aim to improve on these elements in every stage of production via direct relationships with farmers. For instance, Mokha 1450 on Al Wasl Road strives to work predominantly with women-owned and -operated coffee organisations, including female farmers in the Sabree mountains of Yemen.
Because, as the boutique’s owner, Garfield Kerr, points out: “women represent over 90 per cent of the coffee value chain, but are woefully underrepresented in less than 10 per cent of ownership and management throughout the global coffee industry.”
One of the UAE’s largest suppliers of green (meaning not-yet-roasted) beans, Raw Coffee, is a founding member of the Partnership of Gender Equity, which aims to empower female coffee farmers and harvesters.
Also, globally, many companies have found the perfect way to recycle old coffee grounds: they create the perfect fertile soil in which to grow mushrooms.
UAE%20PREMIERSHIP
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The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
What are the main cyber security threats?
Cyber crime - This includes fraud, impersonation, scams and deepfake technology, tactics that are increasingly targeting infrastructure and exploiting human vulnerabilities.
Cyber terrorism - Social media platforms are used to spread radical ideologies, misinformation and disinformation, often with the aim of disrupting critical infrastructure such as power grids.
Cyber warfare - Shaped by geopolitical tension, hostile actors seek to infiltrate and compromise national infrastructure, using one country’s systems as a springboard to launch attacks on others.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Global state-owned investor ranking by size
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United States
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China
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UAE
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Japan
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5
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Norway
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Canada
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Singapore
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Australia
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Saudi Arabia
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South Korea
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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The Sand Castle
Director: Matty Brown
Stars: Nadine Labaki, Ziad Bakri, Zain Al Rafeea, Riman Al Rafeea
Rating: 2.5/5
The five pillars of Islam
Global Fungi Facts
• Scientists estimate there could be as many as 3 million fungal species globally
• Only about 160,000 have been officially described leaving around 90% undiscovered
• Fungi account for roughly 90% of Earth's unknown biodiversity
• Forest fungi help tackle climate change, absorbing up to 36% of global fossil fuel emissions annually and storing around 5 billion tonnes of carbon in the planet's topsoil
MATCH INFO
Wales 1 (Bale 45 3')
Croatia 1 (Vlasic 09')
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
THE BIO
Born: Mukalla, Yemen, 1979
Education: UAE University, Al Ain
Family: Married with two daughters: Asayel, 7, and Sara, 6
Favourite piece of music: Horse Dance by Naseer Shamma
Favourite book: Science and geology
Favourite place to travel to: Washington DC
Best advice you’ve ever been given: If you have a dream, you have to believe it, then you will see it.
