Are Israeli protests really about democracy?

This division is exacerbated by the overlap of religious and ethnic leanings, with most Ashkenazi Jews aligning with the right-centre closest to the left (in the Israeli sense) and Sephardi Jews mostly aligning with right-wing religious and nationalist parties.

This contradiction has existed for 75 years. It intensified after Israel took over the rest of Palestine in the West Bank and Gaza during the June 1967 war. Religious and nationalist Jewish groups believed they had achieved their dream of a Greater Israel or the Promised Land. 

However, this exposed another contradiction between the Jewish character of the state and its democracy. Supporters of integration of the land reject any concessions to Palestinians (such as Likud and its allies) and advocate for Jewish settlement in every inch of the West Bank and Jerusalem. 

On the other hand, supporters of the oneness of the people prioritise the state's identity and purity as a Jewish state in anticipation of the dangers of a demographic bomb brought on by Israeli occupation and annexation leading to the establishment of a bi-national state. 

A microcosm of contradictions

Netanyahu's attempt to curb Supreme Court powers and the ensuing backlash by Israelis is a microcosm of the larger picture of Israel's inherent contradictions.

Historian Shlomo Sand has remarked on this issue, stating that "Jewish democracy is similar to Eastern European countries in ethnocentrism. The Jewish state might have discriminated against the Arab minority between 1948 and 1967." 

"Still, since 1967, it has controlled people devoid of self-sovereignty and deprived them of basic, civil, and political rights. The occupation has poisoned Zionist moral codes that have been fragile from the beginning." 

Israel's three Cold Wars

Israel's continuous contradictions are fuelled by external factors such as globalisation, the end of the Cold War, the subsidence of the Arab-Israeli conflict, as well as internal factors such as the wave of privatisation that has led to the weakening of the state and public institutions in favour of companies. 

As a result, the Labour Party, which established the state, has been ousted in favour of the Likud party and extreme right-wing parties — a trend that has been gaining traction since the second intifada in 2000 and the Oslo Accords.

According to Avraham Burg, a former leader of the Labour Party and a former speaker of the Knesset: "There are three cold wars in Israel: the conflict between Jewish independence and the Palestinian Nakba (catastrophe), the structural tension between rabbinical sovereignty and democracy, and the war between firm conservatism and open liberalism." 

Burg believes that there is a contradiction between the principles of ethnic supremacy, corrupt occupation, Judaism, and the principle of the Chosen People and the principle of democracy.

The results of the November 2022 elections for the 25th Knesset tipped the scales towards the coalition led by Netanyahu, which consists of Likud and religious parties.

This encouraged Netanyahu and his two allies, Smotrich and Ben-Gvir, to move forward with its attack on the judiciary, prioritising the Jewishness of the state, and rejecting any settlement with the Palestinians. This coalition believes Israel has the right to all the land, from the river to the sea.

In a draft document, the coalition stated that "the Jewish people have an exclusive and inalienable right over all areas of the Land of Israel" and that the government will push forward the settlement and development of the land throughout Israel, including the West Bank. 

The coalition also seeks to "ensure the ability to rule and restore the proper balance between the legislative authority, the executive authority, and the judicial authority" as an attempt to limit judicial powers (Supreme Court) which it accuses of being a proponent of secularism.

Exposed dichotomy

The crisis in Israel coincides with global changes that expose the dichotomy between its portrayed image as a victim and the reality of its colonial character. Israel can no longer use the victim narrative to evade scrutiny for its hostile settlement policies and use of force and racial laws that suppress Palestinian rights, which are recognised by the world. 

Widening gaps

Netanyahu's opponents believe that a stronghanded approach with Palestinians will backfire on them. 

The erosion of democracy and liberalism in Israeli society has exacerbated divisions in the country. It is becoming increasingly impossible to close the gap between the Jewish Israel (discriminatory/racist) and democratic Israel. 

The latter is supposed to be a state of citizens, but Israel's colonial and racist character — according to international organisations and Israelis alike — needs to be addressed to find an appropriate solution.
Shlomo Sand argues that a stable liberal democracy cannot exist without effective and equal integration of Palestinians into every future political framework. 

On his part, Gideon Levy stated: "There is no democracy in which five million people live without citizenship and rights… Israel is no longer a democracy... The occupation has become an integral part of it." 

However, Israeli opposition discourse only addresses part of the problem — the Israeli part. It fails to acknowledge the occupation, settlement, and aggression towards the Palestinian people — whether they are citizens of Israel or living in the West Bank or Jerusalem.

Consecutive Israeli governments have shown little regard for Palestinian civil or national rights. Israelis were largely silent about the Basic Law (passed in 2018) that declares Israel as the nation-state of the Jews exclusively, assigning Palestinian citizens of Israel an inferior status. 

With or without Netanyahu, this is the reality of Israel. It cannot claim to be democratic or modern with extremist, right-wing groups in power. 

Gideon Levy wrote: "The occupation and the settlements have defeated the State of Israel, and this is the root of all evil that has poisoned and corrupted it. If there had been no occupation, there would have been no settlements, and there would be no Smotrich and Ben Gvir." 

Despite their stance against Netanyahu's agenda, Israelis — as a whole — have not spoken up against the occupation nor have they defended Palestinian rights. 

In Levy's opinion, the biggest threat to Israel is democracy itself. Most Israelis believe true democracy will lead to the end of Jewish supremacy. 

He says that protests against Netanyahu are more about better governance, than a struggle for democracy and that a true fight for democracy cannot turn a blind eye to Israeli suppression of Palestinian rights.