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00:00You can see Dr. Guy Laurie is with us, Research Fellow of Democratic Values in the Institutions
00:05Programme and attorney as well.
00:07Let's get your sense of things at the moment and the protests we're going to start to see
00:12tonight and how many people are deeply affected, upset by this rift between the intelligence
00:19service and the Prime Minister.
00:21Good evening, thank you for having me.
00:24It's a very concerning issue for many people in Israel because there is this juncture of
00:31both the attempt of the government for a judicial overhaul, which is going forward these days,
00:37and this view of disregard of the government for the lives of the Hussein's that are coming
00:45out and renewing of the war.
00:48So there's this very great concern with members of the public and with the opposition that
00:53the government is going forward in disregard of fundamental issues that concern them.
01:02It's very interesting.
01:03I just want your take on actually when we step back from it as well and you listen to
01:06the narrative from government and supporters, Benjamin Netanyahu, who say it will be like
01:11the equivalent of MI5 in the UK.
01:13You can't have the Prime Minister, they say, distrusting the work of the head of the intelligence
01:18service if they feel they're working against them.
01:21How do you see the government's argument on this?
01:24Well there's a problem.
01:25I mean, of course the government has the authority to dismiss the head of the intelligence services.
01:33But the question here is, can the government do so right now when the security services
01:40are investigating grave allegations against members in the Prime Minister's office?
01:48The question of whether there is a right process that is being followed, and the Attorney General
01:53has argued that it has not been followed, there is no proper process that is being followed
02:00right now, and that there is a fear of conflict of interest of the Prime Minister.
02:05The court seems to have seemed to at least be willing to hear these arguments, and so
02:15has frozen, on Friday has frozen, the continuing dismissal of the head of the security services
02:24until the court can hear the arguments from both sides.
02:28We can get the gist of what you're saying, but you're occasionally having some technical
02:31problems.
02:32But I'm going to persist with the final question, because what you're saying is of import.
02:35The other point here is, if we listen to the words of the former head of the Supreme Court
02:40saying that the rift now that this is causing risks a civil war in Israel, to what extent
02:47do you give credence to those comments?
02:50Well there is a great risk here, because there is a constitutional crisis that is going on
02:56right now.
02:57The Prime Minister and some members of the government have said that they will not be
03:01willing to accept a court's order that will pause their dismissal of the head of the security
03:08services.
03:09And these are attempts of the government to push forward its judicial overhaul and to
03:14really transform the regime of Israel during a war while there are hostages in Gaza is
03:21a cause for grave concerns for a lot of members of the public and could cause social strife
03:26in Israel.
03:27And that's a grave danger and a fear of many of the people here in Israel.
03:32Good to talk to you this evening, Dr. Guy Laurie, Research Fellow, Democratic Values
03:36and Institutions Program at Georgetown University and attorney as well.
03:39Great to have you on.
03:40It's amazing what you're saying to me, thank you.
03:43Thanks for joining us.