JNS
Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara will now be summoned for a dismissal hearing in front of five ministers, instead of an independent committee.
Israel's Cabinet on Sunday approved a proposal to circumvent the independent committee responsible for appointing and firing attorney generals, a move the country's deputy attorney general argued was illegal.
The plan, proposed by Justice Minister Yariv Levin of the Likud Party, would allow an attorney general to be fired by a committee of five ministers. Under the proposal, following a hearing conducted by the five, a vote to dismiss would be brought before the full Cabinet, where it would need to pass with the backing of at least 75% of ministers.
The decision to circumvent the independent committee came after lawmakers failed to reach consensus on their representative to the panel, while no former attorney generals or justice ministers were prepared to join it either, effectively making it impossible to fire the current office holder, Gali Barahav-Miara.
The independent committee, which was established by a 2000 Cabinet resolution, is chaired by a retired Supreme Court judge appointed by the chief justice, and its other members are an attorney chosen by the Israel Bar Association, a legal scholar appointed by university law school heads, a former justice minister or attorney general appointed by the government and a Knesset member picked by the Knesset Constitution Committee.
In the preamble to his motion, Levin cited this deadlock, but also argued that the worsening of the working relationship between the attorney general and the government made the independent committee "unnecessary."
He proposed the plan due to the "unprecedented crisis" between the government and the attorney general," he said, adding that security concerns amid the war "require more structured and effective cooperation between the government and its attorney general."
Following the proposal's adoption by the Cabinet, Levin is said to have immediately contacted the members of the new committee, which will reportedly be chaired by Diaspora Affairs Minister Amichai Chikli and include Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, Innovation, Science and Technology Minister Gila Gamliel and Religious Services Minister Michael Malkieli.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was not present during the discussion preceding Sunday's vote, as he is barred from taking part in deliberations that could affect his ongoing criminal trial.
In an advisory opinion published ahead of the vote, Deputy Attorney General Gil Limon argued that Levin's proposal was illegal and contradicted previous rulings by the High Court of Justice.
The plan "seeks to change the rules of the game, with a clear attempt to tailor them to the termination of the tenure of the current attorney general, and it serves the government's immediate political needs," according to Limon's opinion, which was made public by Baharav-Miara.
"It is difficult to understand the rationale behind doing away with the requirement to consult with a professional public committee that seeks to ensure the independence of the Attorney General's Office," added Limon.
Netanyahu's government has been at loggerheads with the attorney general since its formation.
After Levin announced formal proceedings against Baharav-Miara due to "prolonged differences of opinion," the Cabinet voted unanimously on March 23 to back a motion of no confidence against her.
Baharav-Miara has spared "no effort to thwart the will of the voter," the justice minister has charged, accusing the attorney general of using the political divide in the country "as a spade to build up two legal systems—one for the government's supporters and the other for its opponents."
According to Israeli law, the attorney general does not work for the prime minister, as opposed to in the United States, where the attorney general is an agent of the executive branch. Netanyahu and other ministers have often clashed with Baharav-Miara, who was appointed to the post in February 2022 by the coalition led by then-premier Naftali Bennett.
