Nearly two-thirds of Israelis fear for the country’s democracy, according to a new poll published Friday, a day after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government voted to fire Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar.
Asked if they were afraid for the future of Israeli democracy, 63 percent of respondents to the Channel 12 poll said yes, 33% said no and 4% said they didn’t know.
Among people who voted for parties in government, the figures were 37%, 60% and 3% respectively.
Bar’s planned ouster has sparked mass protests. Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara — whom the government also seeks to fire — advised the government against it, including at the Thursday night cabinet meeting where ministers voted unanimously to fire Bar, and warned that the move could face legal challenges given the ongoing Shin Bet probe of alleged ties between Qatar and top aides to Netanyahu.