Tel Aviv, Mar. 29, (dpa/GNA) - Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition of hard-right and religious parties met the opposition on Tuesday evening for a first round of negotiations over the controversial judicial reforms that triggered an explosion of protests throughout Israel.
President Isaac Herzog invited working groups from the governing parties and the two largest opposition parties.
The talks at the president’s residence ended after about an hour and a half with the participants “in good spirits,” according to Herzog’s office.
More talks with other parties were expected in the coming days.
Netanyahu postponed the package of measures on Monday after massive protests and a general strike. He said he wanted to delay it to make “room for dialogue.”
But Netanyahu had rejected a compromise proposal presented by Herzog about two weeks ago, calling it “unbalanced.” The opposition, on the other hand, backed it.
It was unclear whether that proposal now served as a basis for talks. The protest organizers announced they would continue to demonstrate against the plans, which many say would end democracy in Israel.
“The opposition leaders and the president should know that they are participating in a theatrical performance led by Netanyahu,” a spokesman for the organizers said. He called for a large rally in Tel Aviv on Saturday.
Dozens of people gathered in front of the president’s residence in Jerusalem on Tuesday evening to protest the start of the political negotiations.
There were also rallies in Tel Aviv in the afternoon with hundreds of demonstrators.
After economic life came to a near standstill on Monday due to a nationwide general strike across a broad swath of sectors, normal operations returned on Tuesday, with planes taking off as planned at the international airport after mass disruptions the previous day.
Following Netanyahu’s announcement to delay the reforms, the US ambassador to Israel, Thomas Nides, said on Tuesday the Israeli leader would be hosted by White House at some point in the coming weeks.
“He obviously will be coming. I assume after Passover,” Nides told Israel’s Army Radio. Passover ends on April 13.
“The prime minister has been to the White House probably 50 times,” Nides said.
“There’s no question that the prime minister will come and see [US] President [Joe] Biden.”
However, Biden put a damper on the prospect of a visit to Washington by Netanyahu.
When asked whether he would invite Netanyahu to the White House, Biden told journalists on Tuesday: “Not in the near term.”
Biden also criticized the controversial judicial reforms.
“Like many strong supporters of Israel, I’m very concerned. And I’m concerned that they get this straight. They cannot continue down this road,” Biden told reporters when asked about the health of democracy in Israel.
The US leader said he hoped Netanyahu would abandon the judicial reform plans.
Netanyahu replied on Twitter that he appreciated Biden’s support, but “Israel is a sovereign country which makes its decisions by the will of its people and not based on pressures from abroad, including from the best of friends.”
Since taking office in November, Netanyahu has visited a number of European countries as well as Israel’s neighbour Jordan – but not the United States, its closest ally.
Observers interpreted the lack of a US invite as a sign of displeasure on the part of the US administration over Israeli government policies.
GNA