Report shows settlers' trust in Israeli institutions hits record low

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
27 Mar 23:32

Public trust in government institutions has fallen to record-low levels in light of Netanyahu's judicial overhaul.

Settlers are seen setting up bonfires and blocking a highway during a protest in "Tel Aviv" moments after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu fired his defense minister on Sunday, March 26, 2023 (AP)

Statista reported on Monday, citing results of an annual survey published by the Israeli Democracy Insititute, that public trust in Israeli government institutions has fallen to an all-time low as a mere 35% of Israelis say they fully trust the government's institutions in the year 2022.

Since its inception, the institution has surveyed a total of 23,356 persons (19,614 Jews and 3,742 Arabs living in occupied lands in 1948).

Among the eight institutions that are included in the survey to assess public trust, the IOF ranked first with the highest percentage of public trust (88.1% multi-year, 85% 2022), followed by the Israeli presidency (66.9% multi-year, 62% 2022).

The President is followed by the Supreme Court (59.5% multi-year, 42% 2022), then by the police (48% multi-year, 35% 2022), then the government itself (37.5% multi-year, 24% 2022), the media (37.3% multi-year, 23% 2022), the Knesset (36.1% multi-year, 18.5% 2022), and on the bottom of the list are the political parties (21.2% multi-year, 8.5% 2022).

Mass protests have been taking place in "Israel" over Netanyahu's controversial judicial overhaul.

The reforms would mainly give more leverage to the government over the appointment of judges and enable the parliament to override the Supreme Court.

On Wednesday, Netanyahu's office announced in a brief statement that the Prime Minister has decided to sack Defense Minister Yoav Gallant after the latter spoke out against the reforms.

'Israel' Eroding From Within

For months, upheaval and chaos took the Israeli occupation entity by storm. Violent clashes erupted between the opposition and police, as Israeli settlers protest against the government’s judicial reforms. Appeals for civil disobedience and riots have been met with stern warnings from both sides, as political rifts are widening and warning against the outbreak of a “civil war”.