[Inside Chodong] Israel's Judicial Reform Controversy: Biden Caught in the Crossfire

Recently, news of anti-government protests in Israel has frequently appeared in foreign media headlines. The anti-government protests, triggered by the so-called ‘judicial reform’ of the Benjamin Netanyahu administration, have now escalated to the point where even soldiers are refusing to serve and joining the protests, leading to concerns over Israel’s national security crisis.

A large-scale protest against the judicial reforms of the Benjamin Netanyahu administration took place on the 29th of last month (local time) in Tel Aviv, Israel. Tel Aviv=Photo by Reuters and Yonhap News

This judicial reform is an amendment that drastically reduces and effectively nullifies the judicial review authority that the Israeli judiciary previously held to check the executive branch. Israel, which lacks a formal constitution and constitutional court, created 11 subordinate laws called ‘Basic Laws’ to serve as a constitutional framework since its founding in 1948. Based on these, the Israeli Supreme Court was granted de facto constitutional court powers to overturn government policies through judicial review.

As protests spread across Israel, concerns are rising not only about a security crisis but also about worsening economic instability. However, the Netanyahu administration insists that the judicial reform must be implemented and shows little sign of backing down. The administration argues that if the judicial reform, which has failed for over 70 years since the country’s founding, is not achieved this time, it will never be possible.

In fact, the necessity of judicial reform has been raised for a long time. There has been ongoing criticism that the judiciary, which interprets the Basic Laws?legally equal to other subordinate laws but used as a constitution?as a constitution, has no right to limit the policies of the parliament and government, which are formed through elections, via judicial review. With various Israeli political factions intervening in this long-standing controversy, it is expected that political instability will not easily subside.

The U.S. government views the prolonged anti-government protests in Israel with great concern. At the upcoming 2nd Ukraine Peace Summit to be held on the 5th in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, efforts to reverse the Middle East situation, which is being encroached upon by China, by leveraging strengthened cooperation between Arab League countries and Israel could be jeopardized.

On the 31st of last month (local time), the U.S. political media Axios reported, citing government sources, that David Barnea, head of Israel’s intelligence agency Mossad, secretly visited the U.S. and met with Jake Sullivan, the White House National Security Advisor, and Bill Burns, head of the CIA. This unusual visit by the Mossad chief indicates the extent of the U.S. government’s anxiety.

Underlying this anxiety is the diplomatic performance of the Biden administration, which faces next year’s presidential election. If the Biden administration fails to resolve the immediate challenges of Middle East realignment and an exit strategy for the Ukraine war through the Jeddah peace summit, it could spell trouble for Biden’s reelection prospects. The American public no longer wants taxes to continue funding the Ukraine war amid growing concerns over the budget deficit and worsening inflation.

While it is in the interest of the U.S., the Biden administration’s continued tolerance of the Netanyahu administration’s reckless actions is also a significant burden. President Biden, who has positioned himself as a defender of global democracy, allowing an allied leader to undermine the separation of powers could provoke bipartisan backlash. This is why articles about Israel’s anti-government protests often appear alongside U.S. political news and attract attention.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.