Washington – The top four leaders of the House and Senate invited Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to address a joint meeting of Congress, despite political divisions over Israel’s ongoing war in Gaza.
“We join the State of Israel in your fight against terror, especially as Hamas continues to hold American and Israeli citizens captive and its leaders endanger regional stability,” said Senate Majority Leader Mike Johnson, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, Leader of the Senate. the minority groups in the House Hakeem Jeffries and the Senate. Minority Leader Mitch McConnell wrote this in the letter to Netanyahu, which was released on Friday.
“To build on our enduring relationship and emphasize American solidarity with Israel, we invite you to share the Israeli government’s vision for defending democracy, combating terror and establishing of a just and lasting peace in the region,” the letter said.
A date for the speech was not included in the invitation.
Division over the war
The invitation comes as debate has shifted in recent months over US support for Israel, a longtime ally, amid the war against Hamas in Gaza.
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Some Democrats have called on President Biden to condition or end military aid to the country over his behavior in Gaza, arguing that Israel has violated international humanitarian law. According to the Hamas-controlled Ministry of Health in Gaza, about 35,000 Palestinians have been killed in the conflict, and many face famine.
In comments from the White House on Friday announcing that Israel has submitted a new ceasefire proposalMr. Biden acknowledged the divisions over the war, saying Palestinians “have endured pure hell in this war.”
“I know this is an issue that people in this country have deep, passionate beliefs about. So do I. It has been one of the most difficult and complicated problems in the world,” he said.
The president also said that Israel has achieved one of its main objectives of the war and that “Hamas is no longer able to carry out another October 7,” referring to Hamas’s horrific attacks in Israel last year, which killed more than 1,200 people died. The attacks prompted Israel to start the war in the Hamas-led Gaza Strip.
In March, Schumer, the highest-ranking Jewish elected official in the US, said called Netanyahu was a “major obstacle to peace” and said he had “lost his way by allowing his political survival to take precedence over Israel’s interests.” Schumer, who has long supported Israel, also called on the administration to hold new elections.
“He has been too willing to tolerate the toll on civilians in Gaza, which is pushing global support for Israel to an all-time low,” the New York Democrat said in a Senate speech. “Israel cannot survive if it becomes a pariah.”
Days later, Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, said he planned to invite Netanyahu to address Congress. Schumer said in a statement that “Israel has no stronger ally than the United States” and that he “will always welcome the opportunity for the Prime Minister of Israel to speak to Congress in a bipartisan manner.”
Schumer recently reiterated to reporters that the U.S. relationship with Israel “is rock-solid and transcends any prime minister or president.”
US officials, including those critical of Netanyahu, came to his defense earlier this month after the speech The International Criminal Court has announced it is seeking arrest warrants against the prime minister and three Hamas leaders for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity. If an arrest warrant is issued for Netanyahu, he could face arrest if he travels to a country the court recognizes. The US doesn’t.
The move to obtain an injunction was welcomed by some progressives in the U.S. Representatives. Mark Pocan, a Democrat from Wisconsin, said he would be “more than happy to direct the ICC to the House of Representatives to issue that order.” Senator Bernie Sanders, an independent from Vermont, said the ICC is “doing its job.”
“Democratically elected officials can commit war crimes,” Sanders said in the Senate. “We cannot apply international law only when it suits us.”
The House is working on legislation that will include sanctions against the ICC in response.
Sanders recently told CNN in an interview that he would not attend Netanyahu’s speech, which he called a “terrible idea.” A number of other Democrats have also expressed opposition.
“I just don’t think it’s constructive for Netanyahu to make a joint speech at this time. Period,” Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a New York Democrat, told reporters.
Before Memorial Day, Jeffries, also from New York, said the idea that Democrats are divided on the issue is “overblown.” Rep. Pete Aguilar of California, chairman of the House Democratic Caucus, added that if Netanyahu is invited to speak before a conference, “we will respect that.”
Netanyahu last addressed a joint session of Congress in 2015, when he tried to convince lawmakers to torpedo negotiations between the Obama administration and Iran over the regime’s nuclear program.
Jaala Brown, Alan He, Nikole Killion and Ellis Kim contributed reporting.
