Biden urges Israel not to rush ‘divisive’ judicial overhaul

US President Joe Biden urged Israel on Sunday not to rush into the increasingly “divisive” judicial overhaul proposed by the coalition government, given the other challenges facing Washington’s ally.

In a statement initially published by the Axios news site and sent to AFP by the White House, Biden said, “Given the range of threats and challenges confronting Israel right now, it doesn’t make sense for Israeli leaders to rush this; the focus should be on pulling people together and finding consensus. It looks like the current judicial reform proposal is becoming more divisive, not less.”

Israeli President Isaac Herzog entered into negotiations on Sunday evening in order to reach an agreement between the opposition and the coalition government led by Benjamin Netanyahu. The talks took place on the eve of the Knesset vote on a key clause in the judicial reform bill, which sparked unprecedented protests.

Netanyahu’s government, which includes far-right and ultra-nationalist religious parties, plans to limit the powers of the Supreme Court, under the pretext that the changes are necessary to ensure a better balance of power. When first proposed by Netanyahu’s far-right government in January, the issue caused major divisions in Israel and sparked one of the largest protest movements in the country’s history.

Tens of thousands of people demonstrated in the streets of Jerusalem against Netanyahu’s proposal to limit the powers of judges in an amendment that his opponents say will undermine democracy, while lawmakers began discussing a key clause in the draft.

Opponents accuse the prime minister, who is still facing corruption charges — which he denies — of seeking to pass reforms with the aim of overturning any possible sentence against him.

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