Already recovered from the shock of Saturday when he was admitted to the hospital due to dehydration, the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahuhe faced a day that only gave him headaches: the meeting of the American president, Joe Bidenat the White House with the President Isaac Herzog – and not with him – and new protests in Israel against proposed changes to the judiciary that include the dramatic decision by 161 Air Force reservist officers not to report for their voluntary service.
For Netanyahu, his dream return to power is becoming nightmare. The announcement of the controversial reform proposal in January by the Minister of Justice, Yariv Levin, unleashed 28 consecutive weeks of protests, opened up the identity fracture, hit cohesion in the army and distanced him from Biden who this Tuesday received Herzog with all honors.
The discontent in the White House did not cool down with Netanyahu’s decision to freeze all reform proposals except the law, which could be passed. this Mondayagainst one of the appeals in the hands of the Supreme Court (“reasonableness criteria”) to annul decisions and appointments of the Government.
Biden demands Netanyahu that the reforms be consensual and scrupulously respect democracy to follow the famous bilateral principle of “relationships based on common interests and values” but what really irritates him is the presence of the radicals Bezalel Smotrish and Itamar Ben Gvir in his government and their influence when it comes to the Palestinians. The US understands that Netanyahu does not have much room for maneuver-without his two ultranationalist partners he is left without a coalition because the center left boycotts him either because they do not trust his word or because of the corruption trial-but does not tolerate that it does not moderate them that is, the only one with his hands on the wheel as promised.
In their first telephone conversation since March, Netanyahu told Biden on Monday that, after passing the first law in a few days, he will try in the fall agree on the reform and estimated that there will be no more construction announcements in colonies in 2023. They also agreed to meet without specifying a date and place, although it seems that it will be in New York taking advantage of the UN General Assembly in September. That is to say, as one more leader and not of the main US ally in the Middle East.