Israeli justice minister reportedly threatening to resign if judicial reforms do not pass

Unless at least some parts of the government’s controversial judicial overhaul passes before the Knesset goes on recess at the end of July, Israeli Justice Minister Yariv Levin will reportedly leave the government.

The justice minister has been a driving force in the government’s efforts to push through a judicial overhaul. At the same time, according to Israel's Channel 12 news on Sunday evening, Levin said that if the ongoing compromise talks fail, he wants to push ahead with the overhaul nevertheless.

The current Knesset session finishes on July 30 and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is reportedly not interested in bringing the judicial overhaul back to the Knesset before then. In late March, Netanyahu announced a pause to the judicial overhaul bills to make sure that compromise talks, brokered by President Isaac Herzog, could take place.

It is unclear whether that dialogue has led to any constructive results, however, last week Avigdor Liberman, head of the Yisrael Beytenu party, urged opposition leader Yair Lapid to leave the negotiations, raising concerns that the compromise talks are not progressing.

Meanwhile, despite rocket attacks from Gaza, protests against the judicial overhaul are in their 19th consecutive week, albeit the main demonstration was canceled on Saturday night.

“Rain or sunshine, hot or cold, during war or peace, we’re here,” said Shikma Bressler, one of the leaders of the protest movements at the Nahalal Junction protest. “We understand well, the only danger that really threatens the existence of the State of Israel is the judicial overhaul.”