Scoop: White House holds sensitive meeting on approach to new Israeli government
Scoop: White House holds sensitive meeting on approach to new Israeli government
Barak Ravid, author of Axios from Tel Aviv at Axios
https://www.axios.com/2022/12/07/biden-policy-israel-ben-gvir-smotrich-netanyahu
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The White House held a high-level meeting last week to discuss its approach toward the new Israeli government and the possibility of not engaging with some of its ultranationalist ministers, two U.S. officials told Axios.
Why it matters: It was the first such meeting since the Israeli elections took place on Nov. 1, and it was highly sensitive because Israel is one of the U.S.' closest allies.
Driving the news: The new Israeli government is set to include several far-right ministers, including Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich — two politicians known for their Jewish supremacist rhetoric.
* A U.S. Congressional Research Service report updated not long after the Israeli elections said the rise of the ultranationalist Religious Zionism faction as a likely Netanyahu coalition partner “has triggered debate about the implications for Israel’s democracy, its ability to manage tensions with Arabs and Palestinians, and its relations with the United States and other countries."
* Ben-Gvir and Smotrich “openly support policies to favor Israel’s Jewish citizens over its Arab citizens and annex the West Bank," the report added.
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