Israel’s Cabinet voted unanimously on Sunday to back a motion of “no confidence” against Attorney-General Gali Baharav-Miara, setting in motion the process of her dismissal.
The attorney-general is now set to appear before the public committee for appointments and dismissals, which will submit a recommendation to the government ahead of a final vote on Baharav-Miara’s removal.
Baharav-Miara did not attend the Cabinet session where ministers discussed the 800-page file detailing the government’s complaints.
Israeli Justice Minister Yariv Levin told fellow ministers during the meeting that the fact she had chosen not to attend was a sign of her “absolute disrespect for the government,” Channel 12 reported.
It also proved “that she has no answers to the claims against her,” according to the Hebrew-language broadcaster.
In Israel, the attorney general does not work for the prime minister, as opposed to in the U.S., where the AG is an agent of the executive branch. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other ministers have often clashed with Baharav-Miara, who was appointed in 2022 by the “government of change” led by then-Premier Naftali Bennett.
There are only four grounds that justify the dismissal of the attorney general, with one of them being ongoing and essential disagreements between the government and the AG that prevent effective cooperation—which is the justification cited in Sunday’s no-confidence motion.
“There is no way to restore the trust—the legal adviser must do what any person of integrity would do and resign immediately,” Levin said in his first public statement following Sunday afternoon’s Cabinet vote.
Baharav-Miara’s “continued tenure amid the current situation severely damages the government’s ability to implement its policy, harms the citizens of Israel and undermines the standing of the institution of the legal adviser to the government,” he said, using her official title.
The statement said the justice minister would soon approach the public committee headed by former Israeli Supreme Court President Asher Grunis “for consultation regarding the termination of her tenure.”
Israeli law stipulates that while an affirmative recommendation by the committee is not required, the attorney general has the right to a hearing before the committee and government representatives.
