Israeli govt plunges into chaos

A mass overnight protests over the sacking of defence chief piled pressure on the govt to halt judicial reform plans

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's coalition plunged into chaos on Monday, after mass overnight protests over the sacking of his defence chief piled pressure on the government to halt its bitterly contested plans to overhaul the judiciary.

Amid reports his nationalist-religious coalition risked breaking apart, Israel faced one of the biggest waves of industrial action seen in years after the Histadrut union called for a general strike.

Netanyahu had been expected to make a televised statement on Monday morning announcing the plans, which he says are needed to restore balance to the system of government but that critics see as a threat to democracy, had been suspended.

The statement was postponed, however, as Netanyahu met heads of the coalition parties.

Justice Minister Yariv Levin, who has been leading the process, said that as a member of the ruling Likud party he would respect whatever decision Netanyahu reached.

"A situation in which everyone does as they wish is liable to bring about the instant fall of the government and collapse of Likud," he said in a statement.