Democracy & the Judicial Overhaul

Overview of Anti Democratic Legislation (updated August 2023)

In the past few years, ACRI has been increasingly concerned by intensifying infringements on democratic freedoms in Israel. These threats arise, mainly, from two of the main institutions charged with safeguarding democracy: The Knesset (Israeli parliament) and government leadership. Senior officials have voiced harsh and unprecedented statements against human rights organizations, political groups, and minorities, and have made various attempts to curtail their operations. A tide of anti-democratic legislative proposals is being introduced in the Knesset and there is a rising wave of assaults on social, political, and national minorities in the public sphere.

As a result, the basic principles of the Israeli democratic system are being undermined. There is an ongoing attack on the principles of freedom of expression, human dignity and equality, and on freedom of assembly and protest. ACRI continues to demand accountability with regards to democratic principles and the assurance of such principles in every aspect of Israeli life.

Transparency in Imposition of Movement Restrictions

Yossi Zamir, Shatil-Stok The Association for Civil Rights in Israel, Physicians for Human Rights, Yesh Din, B'Tselem, and HaMoked Center for the Defense of the Individual petitioned the Supreme Court on February 13, 2025, demanding that the military and the head of the Civil Administration regularly publish orders that impose movement restrictions on Palestinians in the territories. The petition explains that without transparency, movement restrictions are imposed chaoticall

1 day ago3 min read

Dissent is Always Allowed. Even During Wartime

Subscribe to ACRI's newsletter Donate to ACRI Illustrative. Police detain a protester at a demonstration to release the hostages. Photo: Yossi Zamir, Shatil-stok Dear friend, Days after the start of the most recent war with Iran, a small group gathered in Tel Aviv’s HaBima Square to peacefully express their opposition to the war. Their position was not yet a particularly popular one, and they may have expected some antagonism from the police. What they experienced was a viole

3 days ago4 min read

Half a Village Without Water

© Alexander Briel Perez | Dreamstime.com The village of Abu Qrenat in the Negev is a divided village. Part of it is recognized, and residents' homes are directly connected to local infrastructure, including water. The other part, which is home to 300-400 residents, is unrecognized and lacks basic infrastructure. In this section, the water supply is maintained by the residents themselves, who connect pipes to water meters located near the village, which are installed by the Ne

7 days ago2 min read

Stop the Ethnic Cleansing and Expulsion of West Bank Palestinian Communities

Illegal settlement, 2015. Photo: © Rita Phessas | Dreamstime.com Since the current government began its term, and with even greater intensity since the October 7 massacre and the outbreak of the war, there has been a steep escalation in the West Bank in the establishment of outposts, the private settler takeover of lands, violence against Palestinian residents, and in the deliberate and planned creation of impossible living conditions for Palestinian residents to the point

Apr 154 min read

The "Compensation Framework" is Really the "Compulsion Framework" for Bedouins

Illustrative. Photo: © Rumata7 | Dreamstime.com ACRI, Bimkom – Planners for Planning Rights, and the Arab Center for Alternative Planning, sent an urgent appeal on April 13, 2026 to the Minister of Construction and Housing, Haim Katz, Chair of the Israel Land Council, demanding that the Council remove the new “Compensation Framework” for the settlement of ownership claims in the Negev from the agenda, which is expected to be put to a vote on April 15. The proposed framewor

Apr 122 min read

Remove a Violent Settler from the West Bank and Ensure Palestinian Farmers are Protected

View of Jordan Valley (photo is not connected to the events in this article). Photo: © Vladimir Blinov | Dreamstime.com On June 29, 2025, ACRI submitted a petition on behalf of 12 farmers from the Wadi Fara area in the Jordan Valley, who have been unable to reach their plots of land and cultivate them since October 2023 due to harassment by the settler Moshe Sharvit. Sharvit is the founder and leader of Emek Tirtza Farm, a violent and unauthorized outpost established near th

Apr 113 min read

War is Not an Excuse for the Police to Block Freedom of Protest

Illustrative. Pro-democracy protest. Photo: Yossi Zamir, Shatil-stok ACRI filed a petition with the Supreme Court on March 31, 2026, demanding that the police and the Home Front Command be ordered to allow demonstrations during the war with Iran, particularly if the demonstrations take place near protected spaces. The petition argues that since the outbreak of the fighting with Iran, the police have been systematically attempting to prevent anti-war demonstrations and forcefu

Apr 104 min read

Ben Gvir Needs to Go: An Amicus Curiae Request

Illustrative. Photo: © Laryn Bakker | Dreamstime.com On March 30, 2025, ACRI submitted a request to join as an amicus curiae (friend of the court) in several petitions against the reappointment of Itamar Ben Gvir as Minister of National Security. The request noted the extraordinary nature of this request: ACRI has never previously appealed to the Supreme Court regarding the legality of a minister’s appointment. However, after more than two years in office, Ben Gvir’s tenure

Apr 92 min read

The Death Penalty Bill Has Become Law. But We are Not Powerless, and this is Not the End of the Story

March 30, 2026 Subscribe to ACRI's newsletter Donate to ACRI NPR Interview CNN Interview Photo: © Oleschwander | Dreamstime.com Dear friend, The champagne was popped and high-fives and congratulatory pats on the back were exchanged. The cause for celebration? The passage of the Death Penalty Bill into law. The disgraceful jubilation surrounding such a repugnant law by the racist and extremist Minister of National Security Itamar Ben Gvir and other members of the government

Mar 311 min read

Abolish the Death Penalty Law

Photo: © Nipa Sawangsri | Dreamstime.com On March 30, 2026, ACRI filed a petition with the Supreme Court demanding the repeal of the Death Penalty for Terrorists Law, minutes after it passed its second and third readings in the Knesset. The law mandates the death penalty by hanging (with limited exceptions) in the military courts in the territories for Palestinian defendants convicted of murder on a terror-related basis, and either the death penalty or life imprisonment in t

Mar 302 min read

The Death Penalty Law: Q&A

Photo: © Alanhutcheson | Dreamstime.com The Knesset has passed a death penalty bill : Penal Code (Amendment—Death Penalty for Terrorists). Below is information about the law, which ACRI unequivocally opposes. What does the law say? The proposal addresses the application of the death penalty in military courts in the territories and in civilian courts in Israel, separately, since these operate within two separate and distinct legal systems. The bill passed and became law o

Mar 307 min read

Renewal, Rejuvenation, and Freedom from War

March 30, 2026 Subscribe to ACRI's newsletter Donate to ACRI Photo: Wix Dear friend, With Passover around the corner, I wanted to take this opportunity to thank each and every one of you for your continued support and interest in ACRI’s work. I hope that this Passover we can celebrate freedom from war, and that spring brings with it renewal and rejuvenation. ACRI's staff never ceases to amaze me, but I am truly in awe of how much they have been able to accomplish in between

Mar 303 min read

Police Attempt to Suppress Protests Against the Iran War

Illustrative. Antiwar demonstrator during the Gaza War. Photo: Yossi Zamir, Shatil-stok On March 4, 2026, ACRI submitted an appeal to the Attorney General and to the police following the dispersal of a small and quiet demonstration against the war with Iran in Habima Square in Tel Aviv. About 20 protesters participated. Upon their arrival at the location, they found around 40 police officers waiting for them. The officers declared that the gathering was unlawful and was distu

Mar 302 min read

Shut Down the New Incitement Unit

Photo: Amos Gil, Shatil-stok ACRI filed a petition with the Supreme Court on March 26, 2026, requesting that it order the police to shut down the new Incitement Unit and to return the enforcement authority over speech-related offenses to the national headquarters of the police. The petition argues that for decades, the investigation and enforcement of the criminal prohibition on expressions, including incitement to terrorism, were carried out through an institutional process

Mar 261 min read

Students on the Front Lines in the North Must be Granted Exam Accommodations

Illustrative. Children reading in a shelter during an air raid alert. Photo: © Oleksandr Lypa | Dreamstime.com On March 24, 2026, ACRI appealed to the Minister of Education and senior officials in the ministry with an urgent demand to establish an outline specifically addressing the guidelines for matriculation exams for students in the conflict zone in the north. Although the Ministry of Education published a general outline for the 2026 summer matriculation exams, it did n

Mar 252 min read

Theft of Cows Belonging to a Palestinian Farmer by Soldiers

Soldiers leading the cows from the pen owned by the petitioners to the civilian truck About a dozen armed and uniformed soldiers arrived at a barn belonging to a Palestinian family in the West Bank, handcuffed the barn owner and his son, broke through the barn's fences, and loaded the cattle belonging to the family onto a civilian truck that arrived at the scene escorted by military jeeps. Social media posts from a group that aids settlers in pursuing agricultural projects (l

Mar 243 min read

Soccer Fans Can Attend Games, Even if Police Don't Like What They're Wearing

Illustrative. Photo: Sebastian27 via Wikimedia (CC BY-SA 4.0) On December 17, 2025 ACRI submitted a petition to the Supreme Court on behalf of fans of the soccer team Hapoel Tel Aviv against the Police Commissioner. The petition demands that the police immediately stop enforcing an illegal policy to prevent fans from entering the soccer stadium because of their clothing or controversial political content. The petition details a series of incidents that occurred in recent wee

Mar 242 min read

You Can Stop the Death Penalty Bill

March 24, 2026 Subscribe to ACRI's newsletter Donate to ACRI Dear friend, I know that there are a million developments in the news that you are following on a number of fronts, but I want to turn your attention to a critical issue that ACRI is strenuously working on—and one that you can do something about. While the world’s attention is on the latest war with Iran, the government is advancing its loathsome Death Penalty Bill , an encapsulation of its cruelty, racism, and deat

Mar 243 min read

Public Comments Before Government Decisions

Photo: © Syda Productions | Dreamstime.com Before weekly government meetings, the agenda is usually published along with attached appendices, which include proposed resolutions. The agenda and appendices are distributed to ministers and professional officials, and published for the public on the website of the Prime Minister's Office. But what was published before the government meeting scheduled for January 25, 2026 was unusual. An agenda was published, but nothing was publ

Mar 232 min read

Connect the School in Rakhma to Electricity

Illustrative. A school in a Bedouin village. Photo: Yossi Zamir, Shatil-stok Approximately 400 students in grades 1–9 study at the school in the Bedouin village of Rakhma. The school is not connected to an electrical system, so its power supply is provided by a generator located on the school grounds. The Local Planning and Building Committee in the nearby city of Yeruham has long refused to grant the required approval to connect the school to electricity, even though the sch

Mar 232 min read

Police violence Against Journalists and Prevention of Press Coverage

Photo by Gil Levin On June 16, 2024, we sent legal correspondence to the Attorney General and the Police Commissioner regarding the conduct of the police towards journalists and their work. In the correspondence, written by Attorney Nitsan Ilani and Freedom of Protest Coordinator Sivan Tahel, we pointed out that recently the police have repeatedly prevented journalists from covering various events, sometimes using force, extreme violence, or false arrests, and that in some

Mar 203 min read

Mounted Police Should Not be Used to Disperse Protests

Illustrative. Photo: © Nathaniel Zorach | Dreamstime.com On August 18, 2025, ACRI filed a petition with the Supreme Court demanding that the police be prohibited from using mounted units to disperse demonstrations—or, at the very least, that the procedures governing the use of mounted units be amended in such a way that would ensure the safety of demonstrators, including prohibiting the use of mounted units together with other crowd‑control measures, conditioning the use of

Mar 192 min read

Palestinians Must Be Allowed to Enter the Old City and Open their Shops

Illustrative. Shuk in the Old City. Photo: © Rostislav Glinsky | Dreamstime.com Since the beginning of the current war with Iran, the Jerusalem Police have not been allowing Palestinian residents and citizens to enter the Old City of Jerusalem unless they are residents of the area. They have also been ordering shops to close even though there is no prohibition on commercial activity in the Old City, or in Jerusalem in general. Meanwhile, Jews are able to enter the Old City w

Mar 191 min read

Stop the Ethnic Cleansing in the Jordan Valley

A Palestinian shepherd arrested in the Jordan Valley after an attack by settlers, July 2025. Photo: From the Facebook page of Jordan Valley activists Shepherding communities have lived for decades in the northern Jordan Valley, making their living from raising and grazing sheep and cattle. These communities maintain a unique way of life, and family ties are essential for their survival. But residents’ movements have become increasingly restricted over the years, a result of,

Mar 184 min read

Roadblocks Cutting Off Arab Neighborhoods in the City of Lod

Photos: Abeer Joubran, ACRI On February 1, 2026, ACRI petitioned the Supreme Court on behalf of four residents of the city of Lod, demanding the removal of concrete roadblocks placed by the police in two of the city's neighborhoods that are home to hundreds of Arab residents. In one neighborhood, the concrete barrier has completely sealed off the area; there is no other way to enter or exit. In the other neighborhood, the alternative road passes through an industrial area tha

Mar 122 min read

Keeping Safe, Keeping Sane, Keeping Busy

March 11, 2026 Subscribe to ACRI's newsletter Donate to ACRI In a bomb shelter during the war with Iran in June 2025. Photo: Yossi Zamir, Shatil-stok Dear friend, During these anxious and frightening times, I wanted to update you on how we are doing at ACRI. With sirens warning of missile attacks blaring at all hours of the day and night, children home from school, and dealing with unimaginable levls of uncertainty, we are nonetheless keeping busy. So far ACRI’s staff is shel

Mar 113 min read

Distance Learning Must Be Accessible to All Students

Photo: © Volodymyr Tverdokhlib | Dreamstime.com Against the backdrop of the ongoing hostilities with Iran, the absence of in‑person schooling, and the gaps between the ability of different student populations to participate in online learning, ACRI submitted an appeal to the Director‑General of the Ministry of Education and the Director‑General of the Ministry of Communications. In the appeal, Attorney Tal Hassin noted that the transition to remote learning once again reveale

Mar 112 min read

You Can't Arrest Someone for a Crime that Doesn't Exist

Photo: © Aaron Amat | Dreamstime.com On March 9, 2026, ACRI contacted the State Attorney and senior police officials following the arrest of a resident of Umm al-Fahm on suspicion of "harming symbols of government," after a video was found on his phone of him giving a police station the middle finger. In the appeal, Attorney Hagar Shechter clarified that the crime of "harming symbols of government" does not exist in Israeli law, and that therefore this is an arrest without a

Mar 91 min read

Increasing Violations of Palestinians' Rights in the West Bank Under Cover of War

A village in the West Bank. Photo: © Jose Hernandez | Dreamstime.com Since the beginning of the war with Iran, sweeping and draconian movement restrictions have been imposed on Palestinians (and only Palestinians) in the West Bank, which include checkpoint closures, road blockages, and the installation of new gates deepening the isolation of towns and communities. The army is also not providing residents with even minimal protection--whether from the war or from attacks by s

Mar 82 min read

Suppression of Protests During Wartime

Photo: Arik Segal, "Documenting the Hi-Tech Protest," WhatsApp Days after the start of the latest war with Iran, police violently and unlawfully dispersed an antiwar demonstration in Tel Aviv. Unfortunately, this is not a new or unexpected event. Below are summaries of some of the cases that ACRI has handled in which the police have attempted to suppress the right to freedom of protest and freedom of expression during wartime. Each case is an illustration of a tactic attemp

Mar 56 min read

Rights From Day 1. Literally

February 25, 2026 Subscribe to ACRI's newsletter Donate to ACRI Photo: © Andreykuzmin | Dreamstime.com Dear friend, The first few months of a child’s life are critical in monitoring their health and development. In recognition of the importance of this period, and the importance of ensuring that children (and their parents) have access to health information and health services, Israel has a network of well-baby clinics, Tipat Halav (literally, “A Drop of Milk”). At these cli

Feb 263 min read

Repeal the Law Disqualifying Teachers with Degrees from the Palestinian Authority

Illustrative. East Jerusalem school. Photo: Ronit Sela, ACRI On February 24, 2026, ACRI filed a petition with the Supreme Court demanding the repeal of the Law Preventing the Employment of an Educator Holding an Academic Degree from an Institution in the Palestinian Authority. We also requested that the court issue an interim order preventing the law from entering into force until a decision is rendered on the petition. The law, which amends the State Education Law and the Su

Feb 253 min read

Another Unlawful Attempt By Police to Block a Protest

A demonstration in Pardes Hanna to bring back the hostages. Photo: Amos Gil, Shatil-stok On February 18, 2026, ACRI contacted the Commander of the Coastal District and the Acting Legal Advisor of the Israel Police following unlawful demands made by the police toward the organizers of an event titled “In Pardes Hanna, We Choose Peace and Nonviolence.” The police were requiring the organizers of the event, which was going to take place in an auditorium, to obtain a permit and t

Feb 222 min read

Well-Baby Clinics for Bedouins in the Negev Have Been Reopened

© Andrey Popov | Dreamstime.com On February 16, 2026, ACRI, together with Physicians for Human Rights and Itach–Ma’aki, contacted the Minister of Health to demand the reopening of the well-baby clinic (Tipat Halav) in the Bedouin community of Bir Hadaj, which was closed in August 2025. There are two Tipat Halav clinics in Bir Hadaj. One has been closed for a long time, while the other, which served approximately 500 women and their children, was closed following break-ins

Feb 172 min read

Police Photography of Protesters

Photo: Wix Media In September 2020, the police scrapped the protocol that prohibited photographing protesters other than under exceptional circumstances. The police claimed there would be a new protocol, but despite repeated requests from the Association for Civil Rights, no new protocol has been put into place. Meanwhile, police officers have been photographing protesters whenever they like, without any justification. Officers have used their personal phones to photograph in

Feb 163 min read

Politicizing the Classroom

© Monkey Business Images | Dreamstime.com The State Education Regulations (Activity of an External Entity in the Education System), 5786–2026, instruct the Minister of Education to establish rules to prevent school activities led by a person or organization that is not part of the education system that stand in opposition to the objectives of the State Education Law. The enactment of the regulations was delayed for eight years, and the Minister of Education announced the for

Feb 152 min read

Workers' Compensation for Unpaid Leave During States of Emergency

Photo: © Kevin George | Dreamstime.com Over the past 20 years, arrangements to compensate workers following military operations and states of emergency have been based on a system in which the State reimburses employers for the loss of their income, and employers pay employees the wages they lost due to absences caused by the emergency. In other words, employers receive compensation directly from the State, and they then transfer the payments to their workers. The Forum for

Feb 103 min read

A Tax Policy that Hurts Farmers

Illustrative. Photo: © Gburshtein | Dreamstime.com On February 9, 2026, ACRI submitted an appeal to the Chair of the Knesset Committee objecting to a proposed amendment to the Property Tax Law, introduced as part of the 2026 Economic Efficiency Law (“Arrangements Law”). The amendment proposes imposing a property tax on vacant land designated for construction and on underused agricultural land of up to 1.5% of the land’s value. The property tax was previously repealed after ex

Feb 102 min read

A Proposed Law to Restructure the Police Internal Affairs Bureau (Machash)

Photo: Yossi Zamir, Shatil-Stock A bill proposing reforming the Police Internal Investigations Department (MACHASH) is being discussed by a joint Knesset committee of the National Security Committee and the Constitution, Law, and Justice Committee. The original bill was introduced by MK Moshe Saada and sought to remove MACHASH from the State Attorney’s Office and place it under the authority of the Minister of Justice, who would also appoint the head of the committee; it woul

Feb 53 min read

Blocking Entrances to Arab Towns in Israel is Illegal

© Liujunrong | Dreamstime.com Several times in recent months, the police set up roadblocks on access roads to Arab towns in order to fight crime and weapons smuggling. The roadblocks paralyzed main traffic arteries, made entry and exit to the towns difficult to impossible, disrupted daily life, and violated residents' rights to freedom of movement and human dignity. In response to these actions, we sent appeals to the Attorney General, the Police Commissioner, and the Legal

Feb 54 min read

Refusing to Allow Volunteer Physicians into Gaza

Illustrative. Photo: Wix After two and a half years of war, approximately 42,000 people in the Gaza Strip, including 10,500 children, remain seriously injured and in need of rehabilitation and ongoing care. Meanwhile, Gaza’s healthcare system has been decimated, and lost around 1,500 medical staff during the war. Even before the war, Gaza’s limited healthcare system relied heavily on assistance and training from specialist physicians from around the world, who came for volunt

Feb 52 min read

Water Supply Cut Off as Collective Punishment

Illustrative. Photo: © Igor Terekhov | Dreamstime.com On January 25, 2026, an inspector from the Negev Water Corporation disconnected the water supply to three unrecognized Bedouin villages in the Negev, after discovering damage caused by vandalism to the infrastructure of the water cabinet. As a result, approximately 150 families, including children, the elderly, and people with disabilities, were left without water. When the water supply was not restored after four days, w

Feb 41 min read

Taking to the Streets

February 4, 2026 Subscribe to ACRI's newsletter Demonstrating against the government's indifference to crime in Arab society. Photo: Oded Feller, ACRI This past weekend in Tel Aviv and around the country Arabs and Jews demonstrated in massive numbers against the unchecked crime wave raging in Arab society. This was a moving show of bravery on the part of Arab society, which has faced escalating attempts at marginalization and silencing since the outbreak of the war, and solid

Feb 43 min read

Mountains of Garbage are being Allowed to Pile Up in East Jerusalem Neighborhoods

Garbage in an East Jerusalem neighborhood beyond the separation barrier, February 2026 On November 13, 2025, ACRI contacted the Director General of the Jerusalem Municipality and the head of the Sanitation Department following numerous appeals from residents living in East Jerusalem neighborhoods beyond the separation barrier regarding mountains of garbage piling up in the streets. Tens of thousands of residents and Israeli citizens live in these neighborhoods: the Shuafat Re

Feb 32 min read

Repeal the Protection of the Public from Criminal Organizations Law

© Andrei Dodonov | Dreamstime.com The Association for Civil Rights in Israel petitioned the Supreme Court on February 12, 2025, demanding the cancellation of the Protection of the Public from Criminal Organizations Law. This law, which was approved by the Knesset as a temporary provision for two years, allows police to use tools that had previously reserved exclusively for counterterrorism and state security purposes, based on classified intelligence as well as administrat

Jan 292 min read

Freedom of Movement for the Residents of Jisr az-Zarqa

Barriers in Jisr az-Zarqa. Photo: Abeer Joubran, ACRI On January 12, 2026, ACRI petitioned the Supreme Court on behalf of six residents of the town of Jisr az-Zarqa, demanding the removal of concrete barriers that the police placed at the entrance to the town and within two of its neighborhoods. The barriers at the entrance to the town narrow the traffic lanes, obstruct vehicle movement, and endanger drivers; the barriers within the neighborhoods prevent passage by pedestrian

Jan 272 min read

Soldiers Attempt to Forcibly Expel Palestinian Families in the West Bank

Illustrative. A shepherd in the West Bank. Photo: © Rrodrickbeiler | Dreamstime.com On January 23, 2026 ACRI contacted the army on behalf of two shepherd families from the village of al-Nakhb in the West Bank. The families have been living in this location for decades, and according to them, the land is privately owned and belongs to the estate of the family’s grandfather. In mid-January, a military jeep arrived at the home of Youssef’s family (name has been changed for

Jan 252 min read

Getting Rid of the Gatekeepers

Gali Baharav-Miara, Israel's Attorney General. Photo: Yosi Zamir, Shatil-stok The Kesset's Constitution, Law, and Justice Committee has been debating a bill initiated by the committee's chairman, MK Simcha Rothman, to split the role of the Attorney General for the Government. This is an extremely dangerous proposal that introduces political considerations into law enforcement, and does away with fundamental principles such as the binding status of the Attorney General's opini

Jan 213 min read

Witnessing the Expulsion of a Community

Subscribe to ACRI's newsletter January 20, 2026 Goats from a nearby settler outpost grazing on what was the home of a resident of Ras al-Ain Dear friend, This past Wednesday, members of ACRI’s staff visited the village of Ras al-Ain in the southern Jordan Valley in the West Bank. Ras al-Ain was home to about five communities of approximately 110 Bedouin families. “Was,” because it is in the process of being dismantled and evacuated, after being forcibly expelled by settle

Jan 203 min read

Bad Fences from Bad Neighbors

Map of some of the fences erected on the roads. Map courtesy of Dror Atkes, "Kerem Navot" Wide swaths of major roads northern Jordan Valley have been illegally fenced off over the past few months. The fences were installed by local settlers, with the clear purpose of restricting the movement of the area’s Palestinian residents. As a result of the fencing, Palestinian communities are disconnected from grazing and agricultural fields, and are burdened with further restrictions

Jan 202 min read