WORLD ROUNDUPIn Israel, It’s Gatekeepers 1, Bibi 0 | A New World Order? | Hunger and Terrorism, and more

Netanyahu Cannot Be Trusted  (Thomas L Friedman, New York Times)
Thank goodness that Israel’s civil society has forced Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to pause, for now, his attempt to impose his control over Israel’s independent judiciary and gain a free hand to rule as he wishes. But this whole affair has exposed a new and troubling reality for the United States: For the first time, the leader of Israel is an irrational actor, a danger not only to Israelis but also to important American interests and values.

Netanyahu Attempts Another Juggling Act, Maybe His Toughest Yet  (Patrick Kingsley, New York Times)
Israel’s prime minister, who has long thrived by pitting one force against another, is caught between his far-right coalition and public anger over the government’s plan to weaken the judiciary.

Netanyahu’s Unforced Error Could Come with Heavy Costs  (David Ignatius, Washington Post)
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s performance since he began his sixth term in December has seemed to his critics to illustrate something that Meir Dagan, former chief of the Mossad, said about him to Israeli journalist Ronen Bergman in 2011: “That someone is elected does not mean that he is smart.”
Netanyahu, the supposed genius of Israeli politics, walked into a political disaster with his plan to remake the country’s judicial system. After three months of protest, which spread so far that it threatened even the stability of the nation’s vaunted military, Netanyahu pulled back on Monday by announcing a delay in the legislation.
The embattled prime minister said he was shelving the plan “from a desire to prevent the nation from being torn apart.” He explained: “When there is a possibility to prevent a civil war through negotiations, I will give a timeout for negotiations.”
The Israeli political crisis should ease now, at least temporarily. But what damage has it done to Israel’s security interests — including its new partnerships with friendly Arab nations and its relationship with its closest ally, the United States? And how has the turbulence in Israel affected the country’s ability to confront an Iran that is potentially just months from becoming a nuclear weapons state?

In Israel, It’s Gatekeepers 1, Bibi 0  (Anshel Pfeffer, Foreign Policy)
The crisis that has consumed Israel was set off by Netanyahu’s far-right government, which days after its inauguration in late December embarked on an ambitious plan that would significantly weaken the powers of the Supreme Court. Many on the Israeli right view the court as overly activist and as a bastion of liberalism that champions Palestinian rights—though its record on the issue is mixed. The proposed laws could dramatically alter the country’s power structure and are made possible because of a historic lacuna: Israel has no written constitution regulating the balance of power between the judiciary, the parliament, and the executive branch.
In response, tens of thousands took to the streets, protesting weekly against what they see as a power grab—and an attempt by Netanyahu to wriggle out of his ongoing trial for alleged bribery and fraud. More worrying for the security establishment, thousands of reservists announced they would not report for duty, including fighter pilots and intelligence officers in Israel’s vital cyber units.

North Korea: Kim Jong Un Seeks Expanding Nuclear Arsenal (DW)
North Korea’s leader said he wanted his country to ramp up the production of “weapon-grade nuclear material” to make more bombs, as Pyongyang unveiled new, smaller nuclear warheads.

A New World Order? BRICS Nations Offer Alternative to West  (Astrid Prange, DW)
Predictions about the BRICS countries — Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa — as the fastest growing economies haven’t quite panned out. Instead, the alliance is now offering a diplomatic forum and development financing, outside of the Western mainstream.

Hunger and Terrorism: The Humanitarian Crisis in the Lake Chad Basin Region  (Ana Aguilera, European Eye on Radicalization)
Hunger and terrorism are wreaking havoc in the Lake Chad Basin region, causing a severe humanitarian crisis. Millions of people are in dire need of assistance, with their livelihoods destroyed and access to basic necessities cut off by the violence and instability caused by terrorist groups like Boko Haram and the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP).