Former Mossad chief Tamir Pardo on Thursday evening came out with harsh and unusual statements against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, as he called for him to be prosecuted for promoting the judicial reform.
"The moment a Prime Minister turns a democratic country into a dictatorship, he must be held accountable. If the law limiting the reasonableness doctrine passes its second and third readings, the State of Israel will cease to be a democracy," Pardo said in an interview with Channel 12 News.
He added, "The Prime Minister is carrying out a coup. He is carrying out a coup, with all the signs of a coup as written in every history book, and for I hope that he will answer for that in court."
He refused to recommend to reservists not to report for service over opposition to the judicial reform. "Regarding the reserve service, or volunteering for the reserve service, this should be a decision of each individual. I, as someone who has already reached the age of 70 and does not serve in the reserves, should not recommend, since it is mainly a matter of conscience."
At the same time, Pardo indicated that he would understand those who stop volunteering. "I also really appreciate their courage and their willingness to do this," he said.
"The Prime Minister of Israel is the one who is disbanding the army of the people. He is brazenly disbanding it, he has no right to do that, neither as an Israeli citizen nor as Prime Minister," he stated.