Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called on justices to reject what he called an “unconstitutional attempt to dismiss a minister” in a High Court filing Sunday, addressing petitions for the ouster of far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir.

A nine-justice panel is scheduled to hear the petitions on Wednesday, after a hearing on the matter was postponed due to the outbreak of war with Iran.

“Accepting the petitions would indicate that the court is, in practice, assigning itself an active and significant role in the political arena without any legal authority,” read the premier’s 129-page court filing.

The petitioners have urged the court to order Netanyahu to fire Ben Gvir over what they characterize as the minister’s unlawful interference in police investigations, promotions and the policing of protests — claiming his behavior undermines the independence of law enforcement.

The petitions won the backing of Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara last year. She had previously reached a legally binding agreement with Ben Gvir meant to curb his influence over police’s operational decision making, but it fell through after he consistently violated its terms, prompting her to support his dismissal.

Netanyahu asserted that the petitions are ideologically motivated and should be “rejected out of hand” due to the “absence of any legal reason for irregular and drastic interference in the constitutional act of the highest order” — the formation of a government by the ruling coalition.

The High Court “has no constitutional right to dismiss a government minister due to the substance of his role, the way he acts within his ministry and in the name of his administrative decisions,” he wrote, urging justices to reject the petitions in order to avoid “serious damage to the separation of powers.”

Ben Gvir’s term as national security minister has been riddled with scandals........

© The Times of Israel