Jerusalem: After US President Joe Biden's demand that Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu "walk away" from his proposed judicial overhaul, the latter dismissed the former's comment, saying that his decisions are not out of pressure from abroad, The Guardian reported.
Washington had suggested earlier that Netanyahu must go for a compromise. But, Biden on Tuesday said that he hoped that Netanyahu would walk away from the proposal.
After stringent protests by citizens, who spilt into the streets in tens of thousands, Netanyahu announced on Monday that he was delaying the proposal.
Biden told reporters on Tuesday that he is concerned about Israel like many of its strong supporters. He is hoping that Netanyahu will work out a compromise, Biden said,
When asked if he was considering inviting Netanyahu to the White House soon, he said, "not in the near term", The Guardian quoted. This comes after the US ambassador to Israel, Tom Nides' recent statement that Netanyahu could be invited to Washington soon.
Dismissing Biden's words of "walk back", Netanyahu said that Israel is a sovereign country and makes decisions by the will of its people and not on pressures from abroad, including from "best of friends".
He said that he appreciated Biden's long-standing commitment to Israel. Israel-US ties are unbreakable, and they always overcome the occasional disagreements between them, he said. His administration is committed to strengthening democracy by restoring the proper balance between the three branches of government. They are striving to achieve it through a broad consensus, he added.
The Guardian reports that Netanyahu has promised the national security minister Itamar Ben-Gvir to form a "national guard" under the latter's control to achieve his complete support for the controversial judicial overhaul proposal. However, critics slammed the PM bribed the extreme right Jewish Power party leader, Ben-Gvir, a militia that would harm Israeli citizens, particularly the anti-coup protesters.
After Netanyahu's announcement on Monday that the proposal is put on hold for the moment, protesters cleared the streets. But on Tuesday, there were reports of assaults on television crews and Arab people by pro-government people.