Israeli parliament advances bill that may override top court

By ILAN BEN ZION
Associated Press

JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel’s parliament has advanced a bill that would enable lawmakers to overturn a Supreme Court decision with a simple majority, a law that critics say would severely erode the country’s democratic checks and balances. The “Supreme Court override” bill’s approval in a preliminary vote in the Knesset was the latest step by Benjamin Netanyahu’s ruling coalition toward realizing the judicial overhaul that is steaming ahead, despite calls for dialogue and consensus from American Jews and Israel’s president, and weekly protest by tens of thousands of Israelis.