Compromise, says US after Israeli PM fires defence minister

The US has asked the Israel coalition to pause legislation aimed at overhauling the judiciary. “We are deeply concerned by the ongoing developments in Israel, which further underscore the urgent need for compromise,” a White House National Security spokesperson said hours after the defense minister’s removal. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday sacked Defence Minister Yoav Gallant, triggering mass protests, a day after Gallant broke ranks with the government and urged a halt to a highly contested plan to overhaul the judicial system. 

According to Tte Times of Israel report, The White House’s comments largely echoed messages that the Biden administration has offered for weeks in both private and public forums in which it has expressed its support for President Isaac Herzog’s efforts to strike a compromise between the coalition and the opposition. A month ago, US Ambassador to Israel Tom Nides called on the government to “pump the breaks” on its legislative effort. But the decision to issue an additional statement following Gallant’s firing indicated an escalation of concern in Washington over deteriorating developments in Israel.

As news of the dismissal spread, tens of thousands of protesters, many waving blue and white Israeli flags, took to the streets late at night across the country. Crowds gathered outside Netanyahu's home in Jerusalem, at one point breaching a security cordon.Some three months since taking office, Netanyahu's nationalist-religious coalition has been plunged into crisis over the bitter divisions exposed by its flagship judicial overhaul plans. "State security cannot be a card in the political game. Netanyahu crossed a red line tonight," opposition leaders Yair Lapid and Benny Gantz said in a joint statement. Gallant had warned that the government’s effort to radically curb the High Court of Justice’s power had sparked a societal rift so large, it had “penetrat[ed] the IDF and security agencies.” Gallant was fired less than 24 hours later.