The Supreme Court in Israel has opposed the appointment of a member of the new government. The judges ruled that the chairman of the strictly religious Schas party, Arie Deri, cannot retain his post as Minister of the Interior and Health. The judges classified the appointment as "inappropriate".
Civil rights activists had previously lodged a complaint about his criminal past. The verdict is seen as a serious blow to the new government of re-elected Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. It is still unclear whether the head of government will abide by the verdict and dismiss Deri or whether he will resist, thereby further exacerbating the dispute with the judicial system.
Minister has been convicted several times
Deri has been convicted several times, most recently in 2021 for tax evasion. In order to be able to be appointed Minister of the Interior and Health in Benjamin Netanyahu's new right-wing religious government, a law was specifically amended. He would later become Minister of Finance under a rotation arrangement.
Deris Schas party accused the court of having made a "political decision" that undermined the will of the electorate. The leaders of the coalition parties said in a joint statement that the verdict was "an injustice". Deri's "extraordinary skills and vast experience are needed more than ever by the State of Israel in these complex days," it said. Deri is considered a close ally of Netanyahu.
Merav Michaeli of the Social Democratic Labor Party called on Netanyahu and Deri to accept the decision: "Any other decision is a rebellion by the Israeli government, allowing anyone to break the law and disrespect the courts' decision."
Is the Supreme Court about to be weakened?
It is feared that the new justice minister, Jariv Levin, could accelerate his plans to weaken the Supreme Court as a result of the court ruling. Tens of thousands of people in Israel have taken to the streets in recent weeks. Another large demonstration is planned in Tel Aviv on Saturday.
According to the plans, a majority in parliament should be able to pass a law even if the Supreme Court considers it to be in violation of the Basic Law. Levin also wants to change the composition of the panel that appoints judges. He accuses the Supreme Court of excessive interference in political decisions. Now he announced that he would "do everything necessary to right the injustice against Deri".
Deri was sentenced to three years in prison in 2000 for bribery, corruption and embezzlement, even while he was Interior Minister. In 2013 he made a political comeback. In 2021 he had to resign from his position as a member of parliament due to new tax offenses and was given probation as part of a settlement. He had assured the court that he wanted to get out of politics.
The new government has 64 out of 120 seats in parliament. Half of them belong to Netanyahu's ruling Likud party, the other half to the extreme right-wing Religious-Zionist Alliance and two strictly religious parties. Netanyahu's camp had won a clear majority in the November 1 parliamentary elections. It was the fifth election in three and a half years.
