Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he had reversed the sacking of Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, which was decided in late March after the latter proposed suspending Netanyahu’s disputed justice reform. The announcement of Gallant’s dismissal had provoked two days of massive protests and a general strike throughout the country: to appease the protests, the Israeli government had finally decided to suspend discussions on the reform until the summer.
In the meantime, however, Gallant’s dismissal had never been formalized, and on Monday Netanyahu said he had changed his mind and had reinstated the minister in the government. “There have been disagreements between us, even serious ones, but I have decided to put them behind us,” said the prime minister in a televised speech, in which he spoke of the complicated situation of the last few days in the country and the violence that began with the clashes between Israelis and Palestinians in Jerusalem and culminated in an attack in Tel Aviv in which an Italian tourist died.