Jerusalem: The controversial judiciary reforms that sparked a general strike and widespread protests in Israel's worst domestic crisis in years were the subject of a second day of negotiations between the hard-right government and opposition parties on Wednesday.

Negotiations on the judicial reform, which would limit the Supreme Court's authority and give politicians more control over judge selection, were still met with scepticism.

One of many Israeli allies who expressed concern was US President Joe Biden. He urged Netanyahu to negotiate in good faith and cautioned against rushing through the reforms.

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President Isaac Herzog hosted the first day of negotiations between the government and the two major centrist opposition parties, Yesh Atid and the National Unity Party, on Tuesday.

The meeting ended "after roughly an hour and a half, and took place in a positive spirit," according to the president's office. President Isaac Herzog will continue the series of meetings tomorrow (Wednesday)," it was added.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gave in to pressure after three months of unrest that tore the country apart after a national walkout on Monday.
The strike affected airports, hospitals, and other facilities, and thousands of reform opponents demonstrated in front of the Jerusalem parliament.

The second and third readings of the bill will be put on hold in order to allow time for discussion because I want to avoid a rift among our people, the prime minister said in a broadcast.

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The premier's decision to halt the legislative process was a dramatic U-turn after just one day earlier he had announced the dismissal of his defence minister, who had advocated for the same action.

The action was met with scepticism in Israel, where the head of the think tank Israel Democracy Institute said it did not amount to a peace agreement.

Yohanan Plesner told reporters, "Instead, it's a cease-fire perhaps for regrouping, reorganising, reorienting, and then charging - potentially - charging ahead."

Yair Lapid, the leader of the opposition, reacted suspiciously and stated on Monday that he wanted to make sure "there is no ruse or bluff." The National Unity Party of former defence minister Benny Gantz and Lapid's Yesh Atid said in a joint statement on Tuesday that talks would end immediately "if the law is put on the Knesset's (parliament's) agenda."

Israel "cannot continue down this road" of growing division, the US president admonished. During a visit to North Carolina, Biden told reporters, "Hopefully the prime minister will... try to work out some real compromise, but that remains to be seen. Netanyahu expressed his gratitude for Biden's "longstanding commitment to Israel" in a statement.

"Israel is a sovereign country that makes its decisions by the will of its people and not based on pressures from abroad, including from the best of friends," he continued. Netanyahu had previously stated that the talks' objective "is to reach an agreement."

Meanwhile, activists vowed to continue their protests, which have lasted for weeks and occasionally drew tens of thousands of people. The Umbrella Movement of protesters declared, "We will not end the protest until the judicial coup is completely ended.

Deep divisions within Netanyahu's new coalition, which includes far-right and ultra-Orthodox parties, have been made clear by the crisis. Bezalel Smotrich, the minister of finance, declared in a tweet on Monday that "there will be no turning back" on the judicial reform.

National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, a fellow extreme-right cabinet member, had urged his supporters to rally in support of the reforms. Ben-Jewish Gvir's Power party revealed on Monday that the agreement to increase the minister's responsibilities was a key factor in the decision to postpone the legislation after he threatened to resign if it wasn't.

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Political correspondent Yossi Verter wrote that the pause was "a victory for the protesters, but the one who really bent Netanyahu and trampled on him is Itamar Ben-Gvir" in the left-leaning daily Haaretz. Three months after taking office, the scandal has hurt the coalition's reputation among Israelis.

According to a Channel 12 poll, which indicated that if elections were held now, the government would lose its majority in the 120-seat parliament, Netanyahu's right-wing Likud party has dropped seven points.