World News for Students of English

29-06-2023 07:00

Israeli lawmakers have started discussing a bill that would limit the Supreme Court’s authority.

The bill had faced widespread opposition and street protests had been suspended in March for compromise talks with the opposition. However, those talks proved unsuccessful and they led to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s ordering the revival of some legislation. The new bill is expected to be a milder version of previous proposals that aimed to significantly reduce the Supreme Court’s ability to rule against the government.

The opposition argues that the new bill still poses a risk of corruption and undermines the independence of the justice system. Critics, both domestically and internationally, view the proposed changes as a threat to Israeli democracy and have raised concerns about the country’s democratic health and investment climate. The coalition defends the proposed overhaul as an effort to balance the powers of the government, legislature, and judiciary.

Difficult words: compromise (an agreement between two sides who have different opinions), revival (the process of becoming more active or popular again), undermine (to make someone less powerful or likely to succeed), overhaul (a major change or restructuring).

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