Israel’s independent-minded Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara finds herself at the epicenter of a political firestorm that could rock Benjamin Netanyahu’s government. The decision in recent days to initiate a complex and delicate dismissal procedure against her could reignite mass demonstrations and cement her status as a symbol of Israel’s fragile and besieged democracy.
The catalyst of this latest drama in Israel is the government’s effort to reboot its stalled authoritarian overhaul project under the long shadow of national trauma following the October 7 Hamas massacre. To enable the reboot, the government would like to remove Baharav-Miara and replace her with a compliant attorney general.
The attorney general in Israel holds an authority unmatched in most democracies. Unlike in the United States or many European countries, where attorneys general serve as political appointees under the executive branch, Israel’s version, established in the early years of the state, wields broad independent authority.
The position is a hybrid: Not only is the attorney general the chief legal advisor to the government, but they also oversee criminal prosecutions and act as a legal check on executive overreach. This independence is critical given Israel’s unique vulnerabilities—a nation without a formal constitution, a fragile separation of powers, and an ongoing occupation in the West Bank where legal ambiguities enable widespread abuses.
In a system where political leaders may attempt to manipulate judicial mechanisms for personal or ideological gain, the attorney general functions as a crucial safeguard against unchecked governmental power. The current government’s attempt to replace Baharav-Miara is therefore not merely about her legal opinions but about removing a key constraint on executive power.
That tension was on full display in recent days, as Netanyahu announced he would fire Shin Bet Chief Ronen Bar because he has “lost faith” in him—even as the Shin Bet investigates claims of illicit ties to Qatar by officials in his inner circle. Bar fired back saying he would fight for his job and suggesting the PM sought personal loyalty and not fidelity to the laws of the state. Baharav-Miara fired off a letter to Netanyahu saying she would need to first review the reasons for the dismissal and explicitly citing “concerns about illegality and conflict of interest.”
A survey of other government efforts by Baharav-Miara illustrates the same pattern clearly:
- In the ongoing effort to formally exempt Haredim from military service, a key demand of Netanyahu’s coalition partners, she has refused to defend the government before the courts.
- She has opposed a plea deal that would spare Netanyahu from a public confession of guilt in his corruption trial while keeping him in power. She supports expediting Netanyahu’s corruption trial, rejects his attempts to stall it with mediation, and insists that any plea deal must include an admission of guilt.
- She has criticized the government’s blocking of a state commission of inquiry into the October 7 failures, which would likely hold Netanyahu accountable—which was de rigueur in previous such cases and is demanded by an overwhelming majority of the public.
- She has impeded efforts to politicize the Judicial Selection Committee, which chooses Supreme Court justices, and to appoint unqualified loyalists to key positions in government and security agencies.
- She has opposed legislation aimed at neutering the Supreme Court, warning of its dangers to democratic governance. And she has refused to endorse the appointment to high government offices of legally compromised politicians, including Shas leader Aryeh Deri.
So Justice Minister Yariv Levin’s announcement in recent days that he is initiating proceedings to dismiss Baharav-Miara was no surprise. It follows months of relentless government attacks on her independence. But dismissing an Israeli attorney general is no simple feat. It requires the approval of the same selection committee that appointed her, which remains divided. And firing her unilaterally without that approval is almost certain to be struck down by the Supreme Court.
Government figures have hinted that they may try anyway. Even if the dismissal efforts falter due to resistance in the margins of Netanyahu’s coalition, the attempt itself serves a purpose. By framing the attorney general as an obstacle to right-wing governance, Levin seeks to erode public trust in the judiciary—a cornerstone of the current government.
Moreover, many observe sexist overtones in the depth of the fury against her. In what Haaretz called “the toxic manosphere” of Netanyahu’s coalition, controlled by Orthodox religious parties and overwhelmingly dominated by men, she is a lightning rod—a nod to the previous, socialist Israel more typified by gender equality.
Either way, Baharav-Miara shows no sign of bending, and her resistance has made her a formidable adversary for Netanyahu and his coalition even though the 65-year-old has maintained a notably low public profile. Her professional journey includes more than three decades within the Justice Ministry, culminating in her leadership of the Tel Aviv Civil Division from 2006 to 2015. She then transitioned to the private sector before assuming her current position.
Polls show most Israelis oppose her dismissal, though perhaps a third support it; in the broader sense, large majorities oppose the authoritarian overhaul. The presidents of Israel’s eight research universities have warned that their institutions will initiate a strike if she is dismissed, saying such a dismissal would pose an “unprecedented danger to the rule of law” in Israel. The Association for Civil Rights in Israel (ACRI) also voiced strong opposition to the proposed dismissal.
Baharav-Miara is not the first attorney general to stand in the way of a prime minister’s agenda. In 2019, Avichai Mandelblit infamously indicted Netanyahu for bribery and fraud, turning against the man who had appointed him. Yitzhak Zamir, in the 1980s, caused an uproar by insisting on investigating Shin Bet’s role in the 300 Bus Affair in which the perpetrators of a foiled bus hijacking were killed upon capture. Elyakim Rubinstein and Meni Mazuz both clashed with governments over corruption cases.
But Netanyahu is the first prime minister overtly fighting the judicial establishment on principle, and plainly driving for unchecked executive power. By resisting, Baharav-Miara has become a potent symbol of the struggle for Israel’s very soul.
And at a time when women’s leadership in governance and justice is being celebrated worldwide for International History Month, the attack on Baharav-Miara—the first woman to ever serve as Israel’s attorney general—underscores another struggle: whether strong, independent women will be able to hold power in fragile democracies. Her dismissal, if it proceeds, would signal the government’s intent to complete its judicial coup but would also likely trigger a monumental backlash. The stakes are existential for the rule of law in Israel itself.
Dan Perry is the former chief editor of The Associated Press in Europe, Africa and the Middle East, the former chairman of the Foreign Press Association in Jerusalem, and the author of two books about Israel. Follow his newsletter “Ask Questions Later” at danperry.substack.com.
Top image: Israel Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara (Credit: Tomer Jacobson (תומר יעקובסון), CC BY-SA 3.0).