With judicial reform negotiations resuming following the end of Operation Shield and Arrow, many Israelis are concerned that talks will fail.
Judicial reform negotiations started in late March and so far, there has been little sign of progress.
Last week, Yisrael Beytenu chair Avigdor Lieberman called on opposition leaders Benny Gantz and Yair Lapid to end the negotiations with the coalition, saying "participation is legitimizing something that is totally illegitimate."
Lieberman's comments came on Monday, the day before judicial reform negotiations resumed following the military campaign in Gaza.
While Lieberman responded to recent polls showed broad public support for the negotiations, saying, "I understand that the public wants dialogue, but our job is to lead the public."
Earlier this week, Justice Minister Yariv Levin reportedly threatened to leave his position if the reforms do not pass in the current Knesset session, which ends July 30.
On Monday, Israeli Knesset Constitution, Law and Justice Committee chair Simcha Rothman said that if judicial reform negotiations do not succeed, the coalition would pass some of the reform laws.
With the negotiations over the Judicial Selection Committee becoming increasingly tense, both coalition and opposition member have accused the other party of attempting to "blow up the negotiations."
On Tuesday, President Isaac Herzog made an unexpected visit to the negotiations, where he reportedly told the gathered teams, "It's money time."
Herzog has been hosting the negotiations at his residence, but reportedly had stepped back to allow the groups to come to their own agreements.
Speaking to the parties, he challenged them to "remain in dialogue."
"I understand that there are difficulties, but the people want agreements. The challenge is to remain in dialogue. I understand the pressures and what you are going through, but this is a moment of leadership. The majority of the public wants us to come out of this with a solution, and it takes time," Herzog told them.
Herzog also acknowledged "crucial and important issues" in the negotiations, and the difficulty in coming to an agreement.
"There are crucial and important issues at stake here," he said. "We know how aggressive and power-driven politics are, and there is no doubt that there are forces that want to undermine [the negotiations]."
This morning, on the Kan Reshet Bet radio show, it was reported that the two sides have made progress on at least two issues in the negotiations.
The first issue relates to the so-called "reasonableness" standard of laws and government decisions. While the second has to do with the status of legal advisers to the government.
The Israeli Supreme Court has used the "reasonableness" standard to overrule laws and government decisions in the past. A recent example is when the court ruled that the appointment of Aryeh Deri to two ministerial positions was "extremely unreasonable" due to his plea bargain agreement in a tax fraud case, in which he appeared to promise to leave politics.
Gantz has promised to stay in negotiations "as long as there is progress."
This article originally appeared on All Israel News and is reposted with permission.