Protests Opposing Israel’s Judicial Overhaul Escalate, Ground Flights |
Demonstrations against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s proposed overhaul of the Israeli justice system escalated overnight (Reuters), with protesters rallying nationwide after Netanyahu sacked a cabinet member who called for the changes to be delayed. The overhaul would give the government greater authority to choose Supreme Court justices and limit the court’s power over the Knesset, Israel’s parliament.
Today, a strike by anti-reform airline employees grounded outgoing flights (Times of Israel) at Israel’s main international airport. Workers at hospitals, government agencies, shopping mall chains, and Israeli diplomatic missions around the world also went on strike. Amid the turmoil, Justice Minister Yariv Levin, who helped craft the reform, said he would respect any decision Netanyahu makes (NYT) about whether to move forward with it.
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“The debate in Israel is a discussion about matters that every democracy must decide, always seeking that delicate balance between majority rule and minority rights. No system is ‘right’ and none is perfect, so no side in these debates has virtue in its grasp,” CFR’s Elliott Abrams writes for the Diamonstein-Spielvogel Project on the Future of Democracy.
“Netanyahu’s image as a political magician who can deliver [his coalition’s] wishes has been shattered,” the Economist’s Anshel Pfeffer tweets.
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Putin Says Russia Will Store Tactical Nuclear Weapons in Belarus |
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Former Taiwanese President Begins Rare Trip to China |
Ma Ying-jeou’s visit to mainland China is the first (CNN) by a former Taiwanese leader since the Chinese Civil War ended in 1949. He will oversee an exchange student exercise.
Hong Kong: Police closely monitored (BBC) a demonstration against a local land reclamation project, the city’s first protest in two years. Only one hundred people were allowed to attend, and they were required to register in advance and wear identification tags.
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Kazakhstan to Increase Surveillance of Trade With Russia |
Beginning April 1, exporters will have to file additional paperwork (Reuters) when sending goods to Russia. The change follows reports that Russian companies are using intermediaries to avoid Western sanctions.
Turkmenistan: The country’s electoral authority validated yesterday’s elections (RFE/RL, AFP) despite suspected irregularities, including reports that voters were given extra ballots. None of Turkmenistan’s elections have been regarded as “free” since its 1991 independence from the Soviet Union. |
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Middle East and North Africa |
Iraqi Parliament Scraps Electoral Law Seen as Benefiting Smaller Parties, Independents |
The legislature announced the change (AFP) without publishing a vote count, and some independent lawmakers said they had been expelled during the debate over the law, which had been adopted in response to anti-government protests in 2019. |
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U.S. Vice President Begins Africa Trip in Ghana |
To kick off her weeklong trip to the continent, Vice President Kamala Harris is due to announce (Reuters) $100 million for conflict prevention in Benin, Ghana, Guinea, Ivory Coast, and Togo, as well as a $139 million aid package to support Ghana’s debt restructuring.
Burkina Faso: The military government suspended broadcasts (AP) by France 24 after the channel interviewed the leader of a local al-Qaeda affiliate. France 24 journalists discussed the interview on air but did not actually broadcast it.
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Mexican Supreme Court to Hear Challenge to President’s Electoral Overhaul |
The implementation of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s reforms, which include cutting the election agency’s staff and budget, will be suspended (Bloomberg) while the challenge is heard in court. His measures have prompted nationwide protests over the past few months.
On The President’s Inbox podcast, CFR’s Shannon K. O’Neil discusses Mexico’s democratic backsliding.
China/Honduras/Taiwan: Taiwan broke diplomatic ties (WaPo) with Honduras, one of its last official partners, after the country formally established relations with China yesterday.
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First Citizens Agrees to Buy Silicon Valley Bank in Government-Supported Purchase |
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) is assisting (NYT) North Carolina–based First Citizens Bank in its purchase of Silicon Valley Bank, which the FDIC had seized after it collapsed earlier this month.
For the Renewing America initiative, CFR’s Zongyuan Zoe Liu looks at the U.S. vulnerabilities revealed by the Silicon Valley Bank collapse.
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Council on Foreign Relations |
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