Senior government officials decide to drop the detention law and the media law

Senior government officials have decided not to defend the detention law and the media law in petitions to the High Court of Justice, aiming to escalate the confrontation with the court. The decision was made in consultation with Levin, Karhi, Deri, and Fuchs.

Senior government officials have decided to waive the defense of the detention law and the media law in petitions to the High Court of Justice, as reported this evening (Tuesday) in the Kan News broadcast. The decision was made in consultation with Justice Minister Yariv Levin, Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi, Shas chairman Aryeh Deri, and Cabinet Secretary Yossi Fuchs. The officials believe the laws are likely to be struck down anyway, so it is better not to appear in court to avoid "legitimizing" the discussion. The goal of both laws is to use the hearing to escalate the confrontation with the High Court. The forum is still debating whether to attend the hearing on the Basic Law: Torah Study. While Levin's principled position is that there is no reason to appear, the government wants to let the ultra-Orthodox decide how to proceed, and they are still in internal sectoral consultations on the matter.