Israel's Defence Minister Yoav Gallant on Saturday called on the government to halt legislation on changes to the judiciary, saying the bitter dispute over the measures posed a danger to national security.
Although other members of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's far-right governing coalition have voiced misgivings about the contentious judicial shake-up, Mr Gallant is the first senior cabinet member to clearly and publicly object.
“The deepening split is seeping into the military and security agencies — this is a clear, immediate and real danger to Israel's security. I will not facilitate this,” Mr Gallant said on TV.
“Legislation at this time must be stopped.”
At least two fellow Likud party lawmakers, Yuli Edelstein and David Bitan, came out in support of Mr Gallant. They echoed his call for justice reforms to be made, but only with broad agreement.
It was unclear whether Mr Netanyahu, wrapping up a visit to London and aiming to finalise legislation on at least one bill in the coming week, would heed their call.
Mr Netanyahu — on trial for corruption — is under pressure from others in his cabinet who want him to proceed this week with a bill that would grant the ruling coalition more sway in selecting judges. Critics say it would undermine judicial independence.
Highlighting tensions in Mr Netanyahu's cabinet, far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir urged Mr Netanyahu to fire Mr Gallant, who he said had caved to opposition pressure.
Opposition leader Yair Lapid praised Mr Gallant's “brave step” and said he was ready for talks on the reforms once the government stops the legislation.
But with 64 seats in the 120-member Knesset, the coalition would still have enough votes to pass legislation without Mr Gallant, unless more lawmakers withdraw their support.
The judicial overhaul plan, announced on January 4, has plunged Israel into its worst political crisis in years, as mass protests sweep the country.
It has also stirred concern abroad and warnings about a serious economic backlash.
Mr Gallant has voiced worries about a wave of Israelis who have pledged not to heed call-ups for military reserve duty if the reforms proceed, saying this could weaken the country's war readiness and national cohesion.
Despite Mr Netanyahu's pledge this week to enshrine civil rights in law and defer some chapters of the overhaul during parliament's April recess, the opposition has not weakened.
Israeli media said around 200,000 Israelis rallied against the plan in Tel Aviv on Saturday, along with tens of thousands more across the country.
“We are here fighting for our democracy,” protester Hila Bron, 41, told Reuters.
The government says the reforms, which would hand more control to politicians and diminish the role of the Supreme Court, are necessary to rebalance powers between elected legislators and the judiciary.
But protester Daphne Oren-Magidor, 41, said the overhaul risked Israel “turning into a dictatorship”.
“The laws that are being passed right now are laws that are aimed to make the government essentially the sole ruler and destroy the separation of powers,” the historian told AFP at a Jerusalem rally.
Thousands of demonstrators marched past the Jerusalem residence of President Isaac Herzog, who has called for dialogue to reach a consensus on the reforms.
The planned changes have also been questioned by Israel's top allies including the US.
President Joe Biden has expressed “our concerns over these proposals, these proposed judicial reforms”, White House spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre said on Wednesday.
Mr Netanyahu was also greeted by hundreds of protesters in London, where he met his British counterpart Rishi Sunak on Friday.
During the talks, the British premier “stressed the importance of upholding the democratic values that underpin our relationship, including in the proposed judicial reforms”, a representative said.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
MANDOOB
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Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre V8 twin-turbocharged and three electric motors
Power: Combined output 920hp
Torque: 730Nm at 4,000-7,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch automatic
Fuel consumption: 11.2L/100km
On sale: Now, deliveries expected later in 2025
Price: expected to start at Dh1,432,000
Infiniti QX80 specs
Engine: twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V6
Power: 450hp
Torque: 700Nm
Price: From Dh450,000, Autograph model from Dh510,000
Available: Now
Specs
Engine: Electric motor generating 54.2kWh (Cooper SE and Aceman SE), 64.6kW (Countryman All4 SE)
Power: 218hp (Cooper and Aceman), 313hp (Countryman)
Torque: 330Nm (Cooper and Aceman), 494Nm (Countryman)
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh158,000 (Cooper), Dh168,000 (Aceman), Dh190,000 (Countryman)
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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BMW M5 specs
Engine: 4.4-litre twin-turbo V-8 petrol enging with additional electric motor
Power: 727hp
Torque: 1,000Nm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 10.6L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh650,000
Squads
India (for first three ODIs) Kohli (capt), Rohit, Rahul, Pandey, Jadhav, Rahane, Dhoni, Pandya, Axar, Kuldeep, Chahal, Bumrah, Bhuvneshwar, Umesh, Shami.
Australia Smith (capt), Warner, Agar, Cartwright, Coulter-Nile, Cummins, Faulkner, Finch, Head, Maxwell, Richardson, Stoinis, Wade, Zampa.
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
RESULTS
5pm Wathba Stallions Cup Maiden (PA) Dh70,000 (Dirt) 1,400m
Winner Munfared, Fernando Jara (jockey), Ahmed Al Mehairbi (trainer)
5.30pm Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 (D) 1,600m
Winner Sawt Assalam, Szczepan Mazur, Ibrahim Al Hadhrami
6pm Maiden (PA) Dh70,000 (D) 1,800m
Winner Dergham Athbah, Pat Dobbs, Mohamed Daggash
6.30pm Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 (D) 1,800m
Winner Rajee, Fernando Jara, Majed Al Jahouri
7pm Conditions (PA) Dh80,000 (D) 1,800m
Winner Kerless Del Roc, Fernando Jara, Ahmed Al Mehairbi
7.30pm Handicap (TB) Dh70,000 (D) 2,000m
Winner Pharoah King, Pat Dobbs, Doug Watson
8pm Conditions (PA) Dh85,000 (D) 2,000m
Winner Sauternes Al Maury, Dane O’Neill, Doug Watson
Director: Laxman Utekar
Cast: Vicky Kaushal, Akshaye Khanna, Diana Penty, Vineet Kumar Singh, Rashmika Mandanna
Rating: 1/5
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.
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre flat-six
Torque: 450Nm at 6,100rpm
Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
On sale: Available to order now
Dubai Bling season three
Cast: Loujain Adada, Zeina Khoury, Farhana Bodi, Ebraheem Al Samadi, Mona Kattan, and couples Safa & Fahad Siddiqui and DJ Bliss & Danya Mohammed
Rating: 1/5
