The increase of the furious mass
demonstrations by Israelis is being closely watched by Palestinians in Israel
and the occupied territories.
As the government moves through with the
proposed changes, tens of thousands of Israelis are protesting Prime Minister
Benjamin Netanyahu's divisive plan to overhaul the nation's court system.
The demonstrators oppose legislation that
Netanyahu and his right-wing and religious supporters want to adopt because it
would give lawmakers the last say in selecting justices while limiting the
Supreme Court's ability to decide against the legislature and administration.
Advocates of the action argue that the Supreme
Court has to be restrained from encroaching too far into politics. But, the
plan's detractors contend that it will weaken the judiciary, jeopardise civil
freedoms, hurt the economy, and damage Israel's relations with its Western
friends.
While others are excited about the protests
and support them, some Palestinians are apprehensive because the extreme
right-wing Israeli government's policies are tied to judicial reforms and could
damage their political and existential future.
Others contend that since the protests are an
Israeli internal matter, Israel should not be concerned.
Nonetheless, as they are under Israeli
occupation, most Palestinians concur that everything that occurs in Israeli
politics directly impacts them, whether it be in the areas of security, life,
the economy, or even politics.
Esmat Mansour, a Palestinian expert on Israeli
affairs, told Arab News that a significant portion of the reforms that are
planned to be implemented will undermine the Israeli judiciary, which is where
Palestinians can file complaints and appeals against the Israeli occupation's
policies against them.
The Israeli Supreme Court might overturn some
of the laws passed by the Knesset (Israel's parliament) and the military
actions made by the Israeli army against Palestinians in the occupied areas, he
added.
Most Palestinians lack faith in the Israeli
judicial system and are reluctant to take the occupation's actions against them
to court there.
According to Mansour, the 1993 deportation of several
Palestinians to Marj Al-Zuhur in Lebanon was halted by Israel's Supreme Court.
The Israeli demonstrations "give the
Palestinians some hope that there are individuals in Israel who reject the
annexation of the West Bank and the death of the two-state solution," a
second Palestinian analyst said, concurring with the first.
Another observer claimed that the Supreme
Court had previously reacted to a Palestinian petition requesting the return of
Palestinian bodies Israel had been holding and the deportation of Palestinians
to other countries.
Although their internal conflicts have nothing
to do with our situation or our future, a senior Fatah leader who wished to
remain unnamed told Arab News: "We do not want to participate in their
internal disagreements. The Israeli Supreme Court was established to offer
defence for the atrocities the occupation committed against our people.