Thousands of people rallied outside the Israeli parliament. (Credit: Ahmad Gharabli/AFP via Getty Images)
JERUSALEM — The Israeli air force said on Thursday that it had dismissed a reservist officer in the military's first punitive response to protests within the ranks over a judicial overhaul planned by the government.
The colonel "behaved in contravention of the corps commander's instructions, in a manner unbecoming of his officer's rank and station," the military said in a statement.
It did not detail his name or infractions.
Thirty-seven reservist pilots and navigators from an F-15 squadron said on Sunday they would skip a training day to "devote our time to dialogue and reflection for the sake of democracy and national unity."
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's hard-right coalition plans changes to the judiciary that would include curbing Supreme Court powers. Netanyahu says this will restore balance between branches of government but critics see it as an effort to hollow out judicial independence and there have been weeks of protests against the plans.
The protest in the ranks jarred Israelis, who see their conscript-based military as a melting-pot that should be kept free of politics. Air force crews in the reserves take part in training as volunteers, without a legal obligation to attend.