Israel’s Government Refused to Obey a Supreme Court Ruling on the Broadcast Regulator

At a meeting on Sunday, July 5, the cabinet adopted a resolution refusing to recognize the regulator’s actions and pledging to use “all lawful means” to overturn the court’s decision. A joint statement by the justice and communications ministers said the ruling “contradicts the clear text of the law” and that the government “will not recognize actions taken on its basis.”

The move escalates a long-running conflict between the government and the judiciary. After returning to power in late 2022, Benjamin Netanyahu proposed reforms limiting the powers of the Supreme Court and legal advisers, triggering mass protests and international criticism.

The resolution quickly met resistance. President Isaac Herzog, whose office is largely ceremonial, called refusal to comply with a court ruling unacceptable. “Noncompliance with a court decision is a red line that must not be crossed under any circumstances,” he wrote on X.

Deputy Attorney General Gil Limon called the cabinet’s statement an attempt to “normalize systematic violation of the law.” Amit Becher, head of the Israel Bar Association, said it amounted to “the complete destruction of the rule of law and democracy in Israel.”

Later, the cabinet secretary clarified that the resolution was not a refusal to obey the judges, but merely recorded the government’s intention to challenge, through lawful means, a ruling it considers illegitimate. That did not reduce the tension. The opposition said the events showed the need to defeat Netanyahu in the election.

Government supporters argue that the court has arrogated too much power to itself over recent decades. Critics say right-wing populism is destroying legal constraints. Before the Hamas attack in October 2023 and the war in Gaza, anti-government demonstrations were held weekly, mainly in Tel Aviv, with secular liberals—who play a significant role in the country’s economy—forming their core.

Elections must be held by the end of October. Their agenda is expected to focus on security, but also to touch on the future of Israeli democracy. The government is seeking to mobilize supporters around the idea of strengthening elected politicians in relation to lawyers who are not accountable to voters.

“The goal is confrontation,” centrist columnist Ben-Dror Yemini wrote in Yedioth Ahronoth. “They want the Supreme Court to strike down decisions and laws, and this has to happen before the election. They want to put a constitutional crisis at the center of public debate.”

At the heart of the dispute is the Supreme Court’s decision to uphold the powers of the broadcast regulator despite its lacking the minimum number of members required to make decisions. Netanyahu is especially sensitive to what he sees as media hostility, and his government announced that it would replace the regulator’s board, appointed by the previous cabinet, with its own representatives.

This comes against the backdrop of a deal to buy Channel 13, one of Israel’s largest television channels, by a group of centrist and center-left technology entrepreneurs critical of Netanyahu, including Wiz Inc. founder Assaf Rappaport. The deal will almost certainly require the regulator’s approval, and some critics feared that a new board would block it on political grounds.

Human-rights organizations challenged the new appointments, some citing a possible conflict of interest.

The Supreme Court froze the appointment of the new board and ruled that decisions made by the previous composition remain valid. The government argues that too many members have left the old board and that it has lost its lawful quorum. Until the board makes new decisions, the conflict remains at the level of threats.

Last week, Netanyahu said changing the powers of the judicial system remains part of his agenda. “We are continuing our judicial amendments,” he said in an interview with Channel 14. “Is there anyone who does not think they are needed?”