ISRAEL COULD FACE CONSTITUTIONAL CRISIS

Jersalem — Israel appeared on the verge of a constitutional crisis Tuesday as top members of Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud urged their party colleague and parliament speaker to defy a Supreme Court order to let lawmakers hold a vote for his successor. After suspending parliamentary activities last week, citing procedural issues and restrictions on large gatherings due to the spread of the coronavirus, Yuli Edelstein on Monday dismissed the court’s call to explain his delay in convening the Israeli Knesset, or parliament. It sparked an unprecedented judicial rebuttal, with Supreme Court Chief Justice Esther Hayut ordering him to hold a vote by today. Even after that, at least two Likud Cabinet ministers, including Netanyahu’s surrogate interim justice minister, called on Edelstein to defy the order, deeming it a judicial “coup” against Israel’s elected officials. The developments marked the apex of an ever-deepening standoff between Netanyahu’s opponents and supporters in the wake of the country’s third inconclusive election in less than a year.