Israel's political factions opposed to embattled Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu began setting up negotiating teams Tuesday after he paused a controversial judicial overhaul plan that had set off unprecedented street protests and a spiralling domestic crisis.
But compromise seemed elusive and Netanyahu's legacy was on the line, in a standoff over the fundamental issue of what kind of country Israel should be -- and positions only appear to have hardened. Three months of demonstrations against the overhaul plan intensified this week and Israel's main trade union declared a general strike, leading to chaos that shut down much of the country and threatened to paralyze the economy.
"I feel relief but with doubt," Fega Gutman, Tel Aviv resident, said Tuesday. Netanyahu over the years "promised us a lot but didn't always fulfill, unfortunately.""I feel good today, everything calmed down from yesterday," said Maor Daniel, also from Tel Aviv. "We have to figure out together how to fix the situation, how to live together."
"This is the time for frank, serious and responsible discussion that will lead urgently to calming spirits and lowering the flames," Herzog said. Netanyahu has argued that the overhaul is needed to rein in a liberal and overly interventionist court of unelected judges. But his opponents say the package would concentrate too much power in the hands of Netanyahu's allies. They also say that he has a conflict of interest as a criminal defendant.
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