Adv. Dr. Eliad Shraga: “The government is changing the mechanism for termination with a single goal: to dismiss the attorney general as soon as possible and turn the most senior gatekeeper into a political position of trust”
The Movement for Quality of Government in Israel filed a petition with the Supreme Court today, June 10, 2025, against the government decision seeking to dismiss the attorney general through a dramatic and precedent-setting change in the mechanism for termination. The Movement seeks the annulment of the unlawful decision to freeze the dismissal process that it initiated, including the summoning of the attorney general for a pre-dismissal hearing next Tuesday.
The government decision, which was made in an expedited process of less than a week without any factual basis, abolishes the obligation of consultation with the professional-public committee that was established following the recommendations of the Shamgar Committee and transfers authority to a ministerial committee. The change leaves the obligation to consult with the professional-public committee to the government alone, and in the event that the government decides not to consult with it the decision to terminate the attorney general will be made by a majority of 75% of the members of the government.
The Movement for Quality Government in Israel claims in its petition that the government decision is not a fundamental change in the mechanism, but a targeted move whose sole purpose is to bring about the dismissal of the current attorney general as soon as possible. In the explanatory notes to the decision, the minister of justice explicitly states that the change is required “given the situation that has arisen, where all ministers have expressed their lack of confidence in the current attorney general ” and that “there is an urgency for the government to make a decision on the matter as soon as possible”.
The Movement specifies in the petition that Prime Minister Netanyahu, who is on trial on three serious indictments, is prevented by a conflict of interest agreement from dealing with anything related to the law enforcement system, and in particular with appointments and dismissals of the attorney general . However, it was he who explicitly requested the minister of justice to formulate a “solution” for the attorney general and called her “oppositional.”
Along with him, nine other government members are under investigation or criminal proceedings in various fields, which puts them in direct conflict of interest with the attorney general who heads the state prosecution system and is responsible for decisions regarding the filing of indictments against them.
The petition exposes a series of fundamental flaws in the government decision: the decision was made without a relevant factual foundation; by an unjustified deviation from previous government decisions that were taken after in-depth staff work by the Shamgar Committee; with evident arbitrariness whose clear purpose is to “draw the target around the arrow”; and in the absence of a legal opinion as required by government regulations.
The Movement emphasizes that criticisms of the current attorney cannot serve as a substantive justification for changing a mechanism that is designed to operate “behind the curtain of ignorance” and ensure an independent and professional process.
Adv. Dr. Eliad Shraga, chair of the Movement for Quality Government in Israel: “We are witnessing a seminal moment in the history of the State of Israel, where the government is trying to oust the most senior gatekeeper by changing the rules while the game is in play. This is the last opportunity to save Israeli democracy and the rule of law. The Supreme Court is now required to stand guard and prevent the final destruction of the system of checks and balances in the State of Israel.”
read the petition (heb):
עתירת שינוי מנגנון פיטורי היועמשית – כולל תצהיר ונספחים- 10.6.25
