The hi-techies were the first. After them, came the physicians’ letter, the pilots’ letter, academicians and intellectuals, and then the statement of retired State Attorneys General and Counsels to the Government
These are the groups that came out to warn of the consequences of the regime change:
“We are watching matters suffused with clear and present danger. We decided that we cannot keep silent anymore, and must raise our voices and say:
We cannot let this happen. The damage will be wept over for generations.”
Over 200 hi-tech executives, entrepreneurs, start-up innovators, CEOs, and venture capitalists signed a letter to Netanyahu in which they express concern regarding the implications of the incoming government’s new legislation and plans. The new legislation threatens to destroy faith in the judiciary system, leading to its collapse and that of Israeli democracy, which could result in damage to the local hi-tech industry and cessation of foreign investments
We were all willing to sacrifice our lives for this country, for many years, as Air Force pilots.
We expect you to use all the means at your disposal, without fear and terror, and to do everything in your power to prevent this impending catastrophe for our country.
Airforce personnel including pilots and high-level officers, 1,197 in all, warned of the destruction to Israel’s democracy by the new government. They signed a letter to the top people in the judiciary system, calling on them to “stop the disaster that is happening to the country”. Among those who signed the letter: Former Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff, Dan Halutz, and Generals Eitan Ben Eliyahu and Amos Yadlin
Call to the Gatekeepers
To: President of the Supreme Court, the Honorable Justice Esther Hayut; the Attorney General of Israel and Counsel to the Government, Adv. Gali Baharav-Miara; Counsel to the Knesset, Adv. Sagit Afik; the senior level of public service and the judiciary system in Israel
Subject: The Last Line of Defense for Democracy in Israel
This letter was written in the name of, and signed by, 1,197 air force fighters and personnel, generations who have served in the air force. All of us were willing to sacrifice our lives for our country, over many years of actions as operational pilots. Even after we completed our service in the air force, we continued to take part, to the best of our abilities, in building the nation — in the reserve forces, in the country’s economy, in industry and education. We believed in the justice of our ways, and saw it as our mission to defend the State of Israel, its Jews and its democracy.
We come from every level of society and from the range of political views: right, left and center, secular and religious, from Mizrahi [Middle Eastern] and Ashkanazi [European] backgrounds, from every region and type of community — city, town and village — in Israel. What we have in common today is our fear that the democratic State of Israel is in danger. You are the last line of defense, and have the ability to stop the destruction of Israel. The State of Israel, established as a Jewish democracy, cannot continue to exist in the spirit of its Declaration of Independence if it relinquishes its identity as a liberal democracy. We expect you to use any and every tool and law that you have at your disposal, without fear or dread, and do everything you possibly can to stop the disaster that is taking place in Israel. We commit to continue to stand by your side in this fight for the future of Israel.
Signed [all 1,197 names]
Democratic Israel is on the verge of the collapse of the judicial system, which will result in the collapse of all its systems
Over 200 physicians signed a letter to Netanyahu:
“The day that physicians decide to provide unequal medical treatment will be a black day for medicine and democracy in Israel.”
