{"id":35588,"date":"2023-02-24T11:38:13","date_gmt":"2023-02-24T18:38:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/israels-rightward-shift-is-straining-its-ties-with-u-s-jews\/"},"modified":"2023-02-24T18:38:13","modified_gmt":"2023-02-24T18:38:13","slug":"israels-rightward-shift-is-straining-its-ties-with-u-s-jews","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/israels-rightward-shift-is-straining-its-ties-with-u-s-jews\/","title":{"rendered":"Israel\u2019s rightward shift is straining its ties with U.S. Jews"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"An
An image of the U.S. flag is projected on the walls of Jerusalem's Old City in honor of President Joe Biden's visit to Jerusalem, Wednesday, July 13, 2022. (Mahmoud Illean\/The Associated Press)<\/span>Mahmoud Illean<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>\n

U.S. Jewish leaders are sounding alarms about what they see as a threat to Israel\u2019s democracy posed by its new government<\/a>, fearing it will erode the independence of its judiciary and legal protections for minority groups.<\/p>\n

While some Jewish leaders dismiss such fears are overblown, a solid majority of mainstream Jewish American groups are voicing unprecedented criticism of the Israeli government, raising fears about a growing rift between Israel and the predominately liberal American Jewish population. Some progressive voices have gone even further, saying Israel can never truly be a democracy as long as it rules over millions of Palestinians who do not have the right to vote.<\/p>\n

The controversies come even amid a flare-up of deadly violence involving Israelis and Palestinians. On Wednesday, Israeli troops conducted a raid in the West Bank<\/a>, triggering fighting that killed at least 11 Palestinians and wounded scores.<\/p>\n

Likud party leader Benjamin Netanyahu took office<\/a> as prime minister in December after the country\u2019s fifth election in less than four years. His coalition allies include ultra-Orthodox parties and ultranationalist parties dominated by hardline West Bank settlers.<\/p>\n

\"Israeli
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, left, and Israeli Justice Minister Yariv Levin, right, stand in Israel's parliament, the Knesset, in Jerusalem, Wednesday, Feb. 22, 2023. (AP Photo\/Ohad Zwigenberg, File)<\/span>Ohad Zwigenberg<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

Critics are alarmed about coalition members\u2019 wish list of expanded settlements, narrowing the eligibility for would-be immigrants claiming Jewish heritage, and restricting non-Orthodox access to a sacred site.<\/p>\n

They see a planned judicial overhaul<\/a> as threatening the checks and balances on Israel\u2019s government \u2014 echoing concerns voiced by tens of thousands of Israeli street protesters in recent weeks.<\/p>\n

\u201cHere we are, about to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the Jewish democratic state of Israel that we love,\u201d said Rabbi Rick Jacobs, president of the Union for Reform Judaism, a liberal denomination representing the largest U.S. Jewish religious population. Yet that anniversary is approaching amid fears for \u201cthe weakening of Israel\u2019s democratic foundations,\u201d Jacobs said.<\/p>\n

Rabbi Moshe Hauer, executive vice president of the Orthodox Union, an umbrella group for Orthodox Jews in the U.S., said Netanyahu\u2019s government and its political opposition share responsibility for the tensions.<\/p>\n

\u201cIs the government\u2019s initial proposal extreme and in need of correction? Probably,\u201d Hauer said. But he said there\u2019s room for compromise.<\/p>\n

The Knesset, dominated by Netanyahu and his allies, voted this week for bills that would give the governing coalition control over judicial appointments \u2014 currently made by an independent committee that includes lawyers, politicians and judges \u2014 and curtail the Supreme Court\u2019s ability to review the legality of major legislation. The Knesset also voted to empower lawmakers to overturn high court decisions by simple majorities.<\/p>\n

The bills require additional votes before becoming law.<\/p>\n

Representatives of the influential American Jewish Committee have urged Israeli government officials to consult with opposition leaders, judges and others, said Jason Isaacson, the AJC\u2019s chief policy and political affairs officer.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you\u2019re going to fundamentally alter a system that\u2019s been in place for a number of years and guarantees the independence of the judicial system \u2026 do it carefully, do it slowly,\u201d Isaacson said.<\/p>\n

That said, \u201cthe sky is not falling,\u201d Isaacson said, predicting Israel would retain a robust democracy.<\/p>\n

Opponents say the proposals would push Israel toward a system like Hungary and Poland, where the executive wields control over all major levers of power. Under Israel\u2019s system, the prime minister already controls the legislature through his majority coalition.<\/p>\n

There could be widely acceptable changes to judicial selection, Jacobs said, but current proposals will \u201ccause deep harm to the structure of the rule of law.\u201d<\/p>\n

Attempts by Israel\u2019s figurehead president to broker a compromise \u2014 efforts supported by many U.S. Jewish organizations \u2014 have failed to make headway.<\/p>\n

\"Israelis
Israelis protest against plans by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's new government to overhaul the judicial system, near the Knesset, Israel's parliament in Jerusalem, Monday, Feb. 20, 2023. (Ohad Zwigenberg\/The Associated Press)<\/span>Ohad Zwigenberg<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

A weakened court would particularly affect groups that have relied on judicial rulings for protections, including Palestinians, LGBTQ people and members of the more liberal Reform and Conservative streams of Judaism, whose ranks are small in Israel but comprise the majority of American Judaism.<\/p>\n

The Jewish Federations of North America \u2013 which rarely comments on internal Israeli politics \u2014 opposed legislation that would give a simple Knesset majority power to override Supreme Court decisions. \u201cThe essence of democracy is both majority rule and protection of minority rights,\u201d it said.<\/p>\n

Amichai Chikli, the diaspora affairs minister in Netanyahu\u2019s government, pushed back against the criticism.<\/p>\n

\u201cTo say that we are changing the fundamental basis of the Israeli regime from a democracy to tyranny or dictatorship, this is complete nonsense,\u201d he told The Associated Press.<\/p>\n

Irving Lebovics, co-chair of Am Echad, supported changes in the judiciary, though he said specifics can be negotiated. Am Echad, a branch of Agudath Israel of America, communicates with the Israeli government on concerns of American Orthodox Jews, including haredi or strictly observant communities.<\/p>\n

The Supreme Court, he said, has too much power in deciding both the law and its own membership, he maintained. \u201cThe Supreme Court opines on whatever they choose to opine about,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Some cabinet members are also seeking to narrow eligibility under the Law of Return, which currently allows anyone with one Jewish grandparent to immigrate to Israel.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s also talk of curbing the already limited space for egalitarian or mixed-gender prayer at Jerusalem\u2019s Kotel, or Western Wall \u2014 the holiest place where Jews can pray, where most of the adjacent plaza is reserved for separate men\u2019s and women\u2019s sections as per Orthodox practice.<\/p>\n

This has importance for visiting American Jews who want to pray at the wall in egalitarian worship.<\/p>\n

Supporters of the progressive group Women of the Wall \u2014 who pray monthly in the women\u2019s section while using practices and vestments reserved to men in Orthodox Judaism \u2014 fear it will face new curbs.<\/p>\n

In a show of solidarity, Reform rabbis from the U.S. and other countries joined the Women of the Wall at their monthly gathering on Wednesday, parading with Torah scrolls.<\/p>\n

Orthodox protesters, including teenagers, heckled and harassed the group.<\/p>\n

\u201cI am bound by my personal values and by my Jewish values to support not only the Women of the Wall but to stand here and proudly hold the Torah for all the women who are told they cannot worship freely and openly at the Kotel,\u201d said Rabbi Hara Person, chief executive of the Central Conference of American Rabbis, the rabbinic arm of the Reform movement in the U.S.<\/p>\n

\u201cUnder the most oppressive government in Israel\u2019s history, the rights and dignity of not only all Jewish women but of all inhabitants of Israel must be respected, supported, and protected,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Chikli told the AP that it\u2019s unlikely that an egalitarian prayer space at the Western Wall would be expanded under the current government.<\/p>\n

Jews in progressive circles say the major established organizations have failed to connect the debate over the legal overhaul with the fate of the Palestinians. They say that Israel cannot be a true democracy when its Palestinian citizens suffer from discrimination, and millions of Palestinians in the West Bank, east Jerusalem and Gaza don\u2019t have the right to vote in Israeli elections.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe movement against Mr. Netanyahu is not like the pro-democracy opposition movements in Turkey, India or Brazil,\u201d commentator Peter Beinart wrote recently in The New York Times. \u201cIt\u2019s a movement to preserve the political system that existed before Mr. Netanyahu\u2019s right-wing coalition took power, which was not, for Palestinians, a genuine liberal democracy in the first place.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rabbi Angela Buchdahl, senior rabbi of Central Synagogue, a Reform congregation in New York City, said it\u2019s unacceptable to have Israeli government leaders claiming to act in the name of Judaism while voicing \u201cunabashedly racist\u201d statements about Palestinians and expanding settlements with no effort at a peace agreement.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe can\u2019t feel comfortable sitting in the light of sovereignty next to a community living in darkness and expect to have peace,\u201d Buchdahl said in a recent sermon.<\/p>\n

She still finds hope for Israel\u2019s democracy \u2014 not in its current government but in grassroots action.<\/p>\n

She recently visited the Middle East as an advisory board member of the Partnership for Peace Fund. The U.S. initiative supports programs that bring together Jews and Palestinians in such areas as medical training and addressing climate change\u2019s impact on the Jordan River watershed.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s what we need to be investing in,\u201d she said. \u201cWorking together in common cause.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Coalition includes ultra-Orthodox and ultranationalist parties <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":35589,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[265,407],"naviga_topic":[],"class_list":["post-35588","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-politics","tag-religion-and-belief"],"acf":[],"author_name":"dh_admin","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35588","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=35588"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35588\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/35589"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=35588"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=35588"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=35588"},{"taxonomy":"naviga_topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/naviga_topic?post=35588"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}