Israel Fires Attorney General in Controversial Cabinet Vote as Supreme Court Freezes Move Amid Outcry Over Judicial Independence

In a dramatic escalation of Israel’s internal constitutional crisis, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s cabinet voted unanimously on Monday to dismiss Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara, intensifying a long-running standoff between the executive and the judiciary. 

The Supreme Court swiftly froze the decision, pending legal review, as critics warned the move could fundamentally erode the independence of Israel’s legal institutions.

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Baharav-Miara has been a key institutional check on Netanyahu’s right-wing coalition, repeatedly opposing executive overreach, including attempts to dismiss the head of Israel’s domestic security agency. 

Netanyahu and his allies have accused her of “exceeding her authority” and obstructing the government’s mandate, but critics say this is a thinly veiled power grab by a prime minister who remains on trial for corruption and is seeking to eliminate legal constraints.

Netanyahu’s camp argues that the attorney general has become “politicized”, while opponents say it is Netanyahu himself who is dismantling the separation of powers in Israel. 

They also allege that Baharav-Miara’s dismissal is part of a broader effort to concentrate authority within the hands of an increasingly hardline government, one described by many as the most nationalist and religious in Israel’s history.

The latest showdown comes in the shadow of an ongoing war in Gaza, and follows last year’s deeply polarizing attempt by Netanyahu’s government to push through judicial reforms, which sparked mass protests across Israel. 

Many observers believe that weakening judicial oversight has left the country institutionally unstable at a time of heightened external threats.

In an emergency petition to the Supreme Court, the Movement for Quality Government in Israel, a prominent civic watchdog, called the dismissal “illegal and unprecedented”, accusing the government of “changing procedures retroactively” to force out Baharav-Miara after it failed to remove her through legal means. 

“This decision turns the role of the attorney general into a political appointment,” the group said in a public statement. 

“The legal battle will continue until this flawed decision is overturned.”

The petition has reportedly gathered signatures from over 15,000 Israeli citizens, signaling that public resistance to judicial tampering remains strong. 

The Supreme Court has agreed to hear the matter, temporarily blocking the cabinet’s decision and further inflaming tensions between Israel’s judicial and executive branches.

Netanyahu, facing multiple indictments for bribery, fraud, and breach of trust, has long argued that he is the target of a “politically motivated witch hunt” orchestrated by hostile officials and amplified by the media. 

However, many legal scholars and civil society leaders say Monday’s firing marks a dangerous precedent, effectively weaponizing the office of the attorney general to shield those in power.

The fate of Baharav-Miara now rests with a judiciary that itself has been under relentless attack. The coming weeks are likely to test not only Israel’s legal system but the very durability of its democratic institutions.