Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu met his British counterpart Rishi Sunak on Friday March 24 at 10 Downing Street, near which hundreds of demonstrators gathered to protest against his controversial judicial reform plan.
After Rome and Berlin, Benyamin Netanyahu is continuing his diplomatic offensive in London to try to convince Western countries to oppose a return to the agreement on the nuclear program of Iran, Israel's number one enemy.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu after meeting with his British counterpart Rishi Sunak, at 10 Downing Street, London, UK, March 24, 2023. TOBY MELVILLE / REUTERS
“Shame, shame, shame”
But his trip to the United Kingdom comes in a very tense context in Israel, where a justice reform project that intends to limit the prerogatives of the Supreme Court is deeply divided.
Since the announcement of this project at the beginning of January, by one of the most right-wing governments in the history of Israel, massive demonstrations have taken place every week in the country.
In London, hundreds of people carrying Israeli flags demonstrated outside Downing Street this Friday morning, when Benyamin Netanyahu was greeted by Rishi Sunak, including shouting “shame, shame, shame”
in
Hebrew and English.
"
I think Netanyahu is taking control of the Supreme Court to make Israel a dictatorship and we must oppose it as strongly as possible
," Alon, an Israeli in his 50s, told AFP. years living in London.
Demonstration against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in London, UK, March 24, 2023. TOBY MELVILLE / REUTERS
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A roadmap"
Dozens of demonstrators waving Palestinian flags also demonstrated in protest against
the
Israeli "occupation" in the Palestinian territories.
Several Western countries, including the United States and Germany, have expressed concerns about the reform plan, as has the Israeli president himself, who warned last week of the risk of "civil war
"
.
The United Kingdom has not publicly reacted to the controversial reform and on Tuesday signed a "
roadmap
" intended to strengthen the long-term partnership between the two countries, particularly in the areas of tech and security.
"
The UK and Israel are also standing together, challenging Iran's harmful influence in the region and the broad scourge of anti-Semitism
," British Foreign Secretary James Cleverly said on Tuesday.
The “
road map
” signed on Tuesday March 21 also indicates that the United Kingdom intends to cooperate with Israel to “
address the disproportionate attention given to Israel within the United Nations and other international bodies
”.
Demonstration against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in London, UK, March 24, 2023. TOBY MELVILLE / REUTERS
