The Israeli Supreme Court has a “huge amount of power while the foundation of that power is paper thin,” says Benjamin Wittes, senior fellow at the Brookings Institution and editor-in-chief of the Lawfare Blog, in an interview with Haaretz Weekly host Allison Kaplan Sommer. 

This problematic combination, Wittes says, is why the Supreme Court is now “particularly vulnerable. It's as if you’ve built this giant and extremely powerful weapon, but built it on a pillar of sand.” 

In a deep dive, Wittes explains and analyzes each of the controversial reforms planned by the Netanyahu government, their implications for the U.S.-Israel relationship and the likelihood that, if they pass, Israel’s arguments for resisting international tribunals will be weakened. 

Some elements of the judicial reform, Wittes warns, are “corrupt” and “very dangerous.” And speaking personally as a legal scholar and expert who has “engaged deeply” with Israel in the past, he says that if the reforms are implemented, it would “fundamentally change my regard for the integrity of the Israeli legal system.

The Israeli <a href="https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/2023-01-12/ty-article/.premium/hundreds-of-lawyers-ex-judges-protest-judicial-overhaul-across-israel/00000185-a5c2-d68c-a7c5-bdd204020000">Supreme Court</a> has a “huge amount of power while the foundation of that power is paper thin,” says Benjamin Wittes, senior fellow at the Brookings Institution and editor-in-chief of the Lawfare Blog, in an interview with Haaretz Weekly host <a href="https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/2023-01-11/ty-article/.premium/a-day-in-netanyahus-new-israel-threats-violence-and-calls-to-arrest-the-opposition/00000185-a0a7-d1f0-ab9d-e2f7a59f0000">Allison Kaplan Sommer. </a>
This problematic combination, Wittes says, is why the Supreme Court is now “particularly vulnerable. It's as if you’ve built this giant and extremely powerful weapon, but built it on a pillar of sand.” 
In a deep dive, Wittes explains and analyzes each of the <a href="https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/2023-01-05/ty-article/.premium/explained-netanyahu-governments-plan-to-weaken-the-justice-system/00000185-8177-d9c9-adbf-e977aabf0000">controversial reforms</a> planned by the Netanyahu government, their implications for the U.S.-Israel relationship and the likelihood that, if they pass, Israel’s arguments for resisting international tribunals will be weakened. 
Some elements of the judicial reform, Wittes warns, are “corrupt” and “very dangerous.” And speaking personally as a legal scholar and expert who has “engaged deeply” with Israel in the past, he says that if the reforms are implemented, it would “fundamentally change my regard for the integrity of the Israeli <a href="https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/2023-01-10/ty-article/.premium/proposed-legislation-may-allow-government-to-hand-pick-next-supreme-court-president/00000185-9d17-da33-a9e7-fd5faa960000">legal system</a>.

From Haaretz – Israel's oldest daily newspaper – a weekly podcast in English on Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish World, hosted by Allison Kaplan Sommer.

From Haaretz – Israel's oldest daily newspaper – a weekly podcast in English on Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish World, hosted by Allison Kaplan Sommer.

Your audio guide to Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish World.

Haaretz Podcast

From Haaretz – Israel's oldest daily newspaper – the Haaretz weekly podcast in English on Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish World, hosted by Allison Kaplan Sommer. 

From Haaretz – Israel's oldest daily newspaper – the Haaretz weekly podcast in English on Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish World, hosted by Allison Kaplan Sommer.

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