Netanyahu goes to the hospital for a pacemaker. He says he will push forward with judicial reform

JERUSALEM – Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was hospitalized early Sunday for an emergency pacemaker implant, plunging the country into deeper turmoil after widespread protests against a controversial judicial reform plan.

Netanyahu’s office said he would be sedated and that a senior deputy, Justice Minister Yariv Levin, would take his place while he underwent the procedure. But in a brief video statement, Netanyahu also declared that he “feels privileged” and plans to move forward with his plan once he is released. Levin masterminded the overhaul.

Netanyahu’s announcement, made well after midnight, came a week after he was hospitalized with what was described as dehydration. It also came after a tumultuous day that saw some of the largest protests yet against the judicial reform plan.

Hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets across Israel Saturday night, while thousands marched to Jerusalem and camped out near the Knesset, or parliament, ahead of an expected vote on Monday that will approve a key part of the sweeping reform.

Adding pressure on the Israeli leader, more than 100 retired security chiefs support the growing ranks of military reservists who they say will stop working if the plan is passed.

Netanyahu and his far-right allies announced the reform plan in January, days after taking office. They claim the plan is needed to curb what they say are the excessive powers of unelected judges. Critics say the plan would destroy the country’s system of checks and balances and set it on the path to authoritarian rule. US President Joe Biden urged Netanyahu to halt the plan and seek broad consensus.

Netanyahu, 73, maintains a busy schedule and his office says he is in good health. But over the years, she has released few medical details or records. On July 15, he was transferred to the Israeli Sheba Hospital in Dukha. He later said he had been outside in the blazing sun and had not drunk enough water.

His return to Chiba for a pacemaker indicated that his health problems were more serious than initially indicated. In the video, Netanyahu said he was fitted with a monitor after his hospitalization last week, and that when he sounded an alarm late Saturday, that meant he needed a pacemaker immediately.

“I feel great,” he said, “but I listen to my doctors.”

It was not immediately clear what the hospitalization would mean for the judicial reform that has so bitterly divided the nation. Netanyahu said he expected to be released in time to go to the Knesset for a vote on Monday. Meanwhile, his office said the weekly meeting of his cabinet, which normally takes place on Sunday mornings, has been postponed.

A pacemaker is used when a patient’s heart is beating too slowly, which can lead to fainting spells, according to the National Institutes of Health. It can also be used to treat heart failure. By sending electrical impulses to the heart, the device keeps a person’s heart beating at a normal rhythm. Patients on pacemakers often return to normal activities within a few days, according to the National Institutes of Health.

The procedure usually involves the doctor inserting a pacemaker near the collarbone, according to the Mayo Clinic. A hospital stay of at least one day is usually required.

As Netanyahu spoke, thousands of Israelis camped out in Jerusalem’s main park, a short distance from the Knesset, after completing a four-day march from Tel Aviv to rally opposition to judicial reform. Late Saturday, hundreds of thousands of Israelis took to the streets in Tel Aviv and other cities in a final show of force hoping to avert judicial reform.

In sweltering 33 degrees Celsius (91 Fahrenheit) heat, the procession to Jerusalem turned the city’s main entrance into a sea of ​​blue and white Israeli flags as protesters completed the final leg of a four-day trek 70 kilometers (45 miles) from Tel Aviv.

The demonstrators, who grew from hundreds to thousands as the march progressed, were greeted in Jerusalem by crowds of cheering protesters before setting up camp in rows of small white tents.

The proposed reform has drawn strong criticism from business and medical leaders, and a growing number of Army reservists in major units have said they will stop working if the plan passes, raising concerns that Israel’s security could be threatened. An additional 10,000 reservists announced their suspension on Saturday night, according to Brothers in Arms, a protest group representing retired soldiers.

More than 100 former senior security chiefs, including retired military chiefs, police commissioners and heads of intelligence services, joined those calls on Saturday, signing a letter to Netanyahu accusing him of harming the Israeli military and urging him to halt the legislation.

Among the signatories were Ehud Barak, former Israeli prime minister, and Moshe Ya’alon, former army chief and defense minister. Both are political rivals of Netanyahu.

“The legislation crushes those things that are common to Israeli society, tears the people apart, dismantles the Israeli army and deals fatal blows to Israel’s security,” the former officials wrote.

In his statement, Netanyahu said he would continue to seek compromise with his opponents. He halted the plan in March after widespread demonstrations, but revived it last month after settlement talks collapsed.

Yisrael Katz, a senior cabinet minister from Netanyahu’s Likud party, said the bill would pass one way or another on Monday and rejected pressure from the ranks of the military, the most respected institution among Israel’s Jewish majority. “There is a clear attempt here to use military service to force the government to change its policy,” he told Channel 12 television.

The sweeping reform would limit the Supreme Court’s oversight powers by preventing judges from overturning government decisions on the grounds that they are “unreasonable.”

Supporters say the current standard of “reasonableness” gives judges excessive decision-making powers over elected officials. Critics say removing the standard, which is invoked only in rare cases, would allow the government to make arbitrary decisions, make improper appointments or dismissals, and open the door to corruption.

Monday’s vote will mark the first major legislation to be approved.

The comprehensive reform also calls for other radical changes aimed at limiting the powers of the judiciary, from limiting the Supreme Court’s ability to challenge parliamentary decisions, to changing the way judges are selected.

The protesters, who come from a broad swath of Israeli society, see the reform as a power grab fueled by personal and political grievances for Netanyahu, who is on trial on corruption charges, and his associates, who want to deepen Israel’s control of the occupied West Bank and perpetuate controversial exceptions for ultra-Orthodox men.