Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Justice Minister Yariv Levin spoke before the Prime Minister’s departure to Rome on Thursday and, according to sources with knowledge of the conversation, Netanyahu expressed his desire for a compromise in the judicial reform, Kan 11 News reported on Friday.
According to the report, the coalition plans to continue to promote the legislation on the reform next week, but they are considering the idea of starting to unilaterally water down the reform soon, even without waiting for agreements with the coalition.
Meanwhile, a senior official in the coalition told Kan 11 News that President Isaac Herzog has lost his ability to serve as an honest mediator between the coalition and the opposition, following his statement from Thursday night, in which he outright rejected the reform in its current form and announced that he would publish his outline as early as next week.
In his remarks, Herzog called on the coalition to cease its efforts to pass the reforms in their current form.
“The sights we saw today are a nightmare for the country. Enough. I can no longer watch our nation being torn apart before our very eyes. What is happening here is a disaster. Citizens of Israel – I work for you, for you, and only for you. I see the sights and hear the cries that are addressed to me and have only one goal: to do everything I can to make it stop, and to find a solution. I accept with love every harsh and painful criticism, however difficult and painful it may be. But I want to make it clear that I will not give up. I will pay any price to find a solution, on the condition that it happens now. Because we don’t have any time left.”
Addressing the coalition, Herzog added, “If you choose to continue on the path you have followed so far, you must accept responsibility for the ensuing chaos. History will judge you. Take responsibility and do so now.”
According to the Kan 11 News report, despite the disappointment with Herzog”s comments, the chairman of the Knesset Constitution Committee, MK Simcha Rothman, said in closed conversations that he would agree to hold a dialogue on the outline Herzog will present.
(Israel National News’ North American desk is keeping you updated until the start of Shabbat in New York. The time posted automatically on all Israel National News articles, however, is Israeli time.)
