Assessment: Ben Gvir: ‘We’re not another star on US flag’; Likud’s Vaturi: ‘We’re probably more democratic’ than US; ex-envoy: Some US officials see Netanyahu as ‘existential danger to Israel’ …
Members of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition reacted furiously Wednesday morning to US President Joe Biden’s extraordinary criticism of Jerusalem’s plan to severely weaken the justice system, with one Knesset member from the premier’s ruling Likud party going so far as to claim that Israel was “probably more democratic” than America and accusing former US president Barack Obama of causing the death of Israeli soldiers during a 2014 operation in the Gaza Strip.
Following the right-wing outburst, Netanyahu instructed members of the cabinet to not comment on the tensions with Washington.
Meanwhile, opposition figures decried the government as “dangerous,” and a former Israeli envoy to Washington described the current crisis as perhaps the worst in bilateral relations in more than 30 years, adding that the Biden administration has “no trust” in the prime minister.
“For from the top of the rocks I see him, And from the hills I behold him; There! A people dwelling alone, Not reckoning itself among the nations.” Numbers 23:9
Biden urged Netanyahu on Tuesday to “walk away” from his current judicial overhaul legislation, saying he was “very concerned” about the health of Israeli democracy and warning that Israel “cannot continue down this road.”
“Hopefully the prime minister will act in a way that he can try to work out some genuine compromise, but that remains to be seen,” Biden told reporters, emphasizing the word “genuine.” Biden also gave an emphatic “no” when asked whether he would be inviting Netanyahu to the White House, adding: “Not in the near term.”
Read More @ Times of Israel HERE
