Knesset passes sweeping law allowing government to override attorney general

Knesset approved a sweeping law Wednesday evening that sharply weakens the authority of the attorney general, allowing the government to disregard the office’s legal opinions and determine for itself how the law should be interpreted. The bill passed its second and third readings in the Knesset by 61 votes to 51, completing the legislative process. Its central provision ends the binding status traditionally given to opinions issued by the attorney general, Israel’s highest legal adviser to the government. Under the new law, those opinions will become recommendations that the government may reject. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was absent from the vote, as he was from several other coalition bills approved this week. His absence may also have been connected to a conflict-of-interest arrangement arising from his ongoing criminal trial. The law is a central element of the judicial overhaul promoted by Netanyahu’s government since it took office.