Supreme Court Petition Challenges Law Protecting Netanyahu Amid Corruption Trial: Critics Accuse Government of Promoting Corruption

Israel's Supreme Court heard a petition on Thursday regarding a law that protects Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu from being removed from office over claims of a conflict of interest due to his ongoing corruption trial.

The law, passed in March, limits the removal of a prime minister to cases of medical and mental incapacitation, effectively shielding Netanyahu from being deemed unfit for office. Critics argue that the law is tailored specifically for Netanyahu and promotes corruption.

The Movement for Quality Government in Israel protested outside the Supreme Court, claiming that the law interfered with the Israeli constitution. The law also stipulates that only the prime minister or the government can decide whether the prime minister is unfit to rule, not the attorney general.

Netanyahu is currently on trial for charges of fraud, breach of trust, and accepting bribes in three separate cases. The hearing took place as Netanyahu and his allies are pushing for judicial overhaul bills that aim to limit the power of the Supreme Court and give more control over the appointment of judges to the ruling coalition.

These proposed changes have sparked mass protests in Israel, with opponents arguing that they would concentrate power in the hands of the executive and weaken checks and balances. Netanyahu and his allies argue that these changes are necessary to curb what they see as an overly activist court composed of unelected judges.