Israeli protesters close major port and target airport over judicial reform plan

Haifa port closed for over an hour ahead of planned demonstration at Ben Gurion Airport

Israeli police officers disperse demonstrators blocking a highway during a protest in Tel Aviv on Saturday. AP

Protesters in Israel briefly closed a major seaport on Monday ahead of planned demonstrations at the country's only international airport over controversial judicial reforms.

The gate to the port of Haifa, a major city in the north, was closed for more than an hour on Monday morning, preventing around 100 trucks from entering the the port and delaying cargo from being loaded onto vessels, officials said.

Record protests began in March amid proposed judicial reforms by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, which threaten to vastly reduce the power of the Supreme Court and place judicial influence in the hands of the far-right cabinet.

The demonstrations forced the PM to delay debate of the reforms by more than a month and stretched security forces, leaving Arab citizens vulnerable to growing right-wing attacks.

Protesters also plan to disrupt operations at Ben Gurion International Airport later on Monday, according to notices circulated online.

One flyer shared online called on demonstrators to come to Ben Gurion with suitcases and passports, suggesting that they planned to pose as passengers to bypass police cordons.

Others have called on people to drive slowly around the airport to disrupt traffic.

Police pledged to keep Ben Gurion operating and access routes open, citing both high summer traffic and the need to ensure emergency vehicles can respond to incidents such as the unscheduled landing over the weekend of a damaged airliner.

Mr Netanyahu has recently backtracked on key elements of the proposed reforms, citing public disapproval of the moves.

"It's out," the PM said in an interview with the Wall Street Journal last week, referring to a provision to remove Supreme Court oversight of legislation.

The provision would have allowed parliament to pass laws that are immune from judicial review, a measure that critics say would render Israel's legal system pointless.

He has accused the opposition of stalling compromise, saying opponents to the reforms "couldn’t agree to the most minimal [proposals]."