High Court judge agrees to hear petition against Gallant's dismissal

High Court of Justice judge Yael Willner gave Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu until noon on Thursday to respond to a petition against the firing of Defense Minister Yoav Gallant on the grounds that the move was “extremely unreasonable.”

The fact that Willner did not dismiss the petition out of hand was notable, as the court’s ability to intervene in such cases was a major point of contention in 2023 between the supporters and detractors of the government’s judicial reforms.

The petition was filed on Wednesday morning by the Movement for Quality Government in Israel.

Criticism of Gallant's dismissal 

“The dismissal of the defense minister at a time of war and when the State of Israel is under an unprecedented threat in several arenas was taken because of extraneous and narrow political considerations with the sole purpose of promoting the draft-dodge laws and preserving the coalition, and contrary to the considerations established in the court ruling regarding the transfer of a minister from his position,” it said in a statement.

According to MQG, the legal flaws in the decision included “extreme unreasonableness that harms the government’s ability to function as the executive authority” and “extraneous and political considerations that are irrelevant and contrary to the considerations established in the ruling, which are the promotion of the government’s ability to function properly as the executive authority of the state and to fulfill the policy goals facing it.”

Furthermore, they included “an acute conflict of interest of the prime minister who prefers his political survival over security requirements” and “a grievous blow to public trust in the security establishment and to decision-making during wartime.”

Justice Minister Yariv Levin (Likud) criticized Willner’s decision not to dismiss the petition out of hand.

“The honorable judge Willner already turned herself into the justice minister when she put out a scandalous directive and took control over the judicial appointments committee,” Levin said, referring to a ruling in August that determined that Levin did not have the authority to continue refraining from convening the committee to appoint new judges.

“Now is the opportunity to bless her for moving up a step by stepping into the shoes of the prime minister and hearing cases on the removal and appointment of ministers instead of rejecting the petition outright,” Levin said.

“The sky’s the limit. We will wait tensely until January 20 to see when the honorable judge Willner will debate the American people’s decision in electing its president.”

Gallant’s dismissal will come into effect on Thursday evening, and the demand for a quick response from the state came to determine whether or not to issue a directive regarding the move before it becomes official.