Supreme Court Justice Yitzhak Amit canceled the High Court hearing on the petitions against the dismissal of the Attorney General on Monday afternoon.
This follows the government's refusal to send a representative to the discussion.
The announcement of the cancellation of the hearing came unexpectedly, seconds after it began: "The procedure was conducted ex parte, with the court hearing only the petitioners and after issuing a conditional order and an interim order," said Judge Amit in his opening remarks. "I am going to disappoint you with the absence of a government appearance. We cannot hold an oral hearing in an empty courtroom. We will send the verdict and thank you for coming.".
The remarks sparked a commotion in the courtroom and angry shouts from the audience.
For the purpose of hearing the petition, an expanded panel of judges convened, headed by Judge Amit, flanked by Deputy President Noam Solberg and Judges Khaled Kabob, David Mintz, Alex Stein, Ofer Grosskopf, and Gila Kanfi-Steinitz.
At the beginning of the hearing, President Amit wondered whether there was a representative in the courtroom on behalf of Justice Minister Yariv Levin, and when it became apparent that there was none, he decided to cancel the hearing.
In response to Amit's decision, Justice Minister Yariv Levin and Minister Amichai Shikli said: "Judge Amit said last week that the court is not a theater. He was right. Therefore, the government did not participate in this absurd show.
""There is no legal process in the world in which a government official who has been removed from office enslaves legal counsel and the prosecution to represent her instead of the government, and to prevent her removal. The government has demanded several times from the court to put an end to this conduct. But to no avail.".
""The government cannot participate in a process whose outcome is predetermined - making the government the only entity in the State of Israel that is forced upon it to choose who will be its legal advisor and who will represent it in court.".
""All of this is happening while the same advisor who was dismissed continues to act with a conflict of interest to prevent the proper conduct of one of the most important investigations in the history of the state, and while the court cooperates with her in deliberate and ongoing delay.".
""The time has come for the court to take stock.".
A senior government official told Channel 14's Moti Castel: "We demanded that the State Attorney's Office represent the government, as it should. Instead, the State Attorney's Office decided to represent the personal position of Attorney Bahar Meyara. We will not participate in this invalid process and will not legitimize it.".
""Even in dark dictatorships, court hearings are conducted in the presence of both parties. Only in the State of Israel, the Israeli government does not have the possibility of giving its position through the State Attorney's Office.".
More than three months ago, the government approved the dismissal of Gali Baharav-Miara, who did not attend the meeting or send a representative on her behalf. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu did not participate in the vote.
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