JERUSALEM: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will make a historic speech to the US Congress on Wednesday, amid tremendous pressure to swiftly sever ties with Hamas in Gaza.
Although Netanyahu will surpass Britain’s Winston Churchill by becoming the first foreign leader to address a joint gathering of the two chambers four times, having addressed them three times already, there is still no confirmation of an anticipated meeting between Netanyahu and US President Joe Biden.
In public, Biden has shown his unwavering support for Israel; yet, he has also voiced alarm at an attack on the southern city of Rafah in May and has temporarily halted the supply of heavy weapons to Israel.
According to Steven Cook, a Middle East expert with the Council on Foreign Relations, “the atmosphere has never been so fraught.” Cook stated in a remark that “there is clearly tension in the relationship, especially between the White House and the Israeli prime minister.”
A Jewish senator from Hawaii, Brian Schatz, a Democrat, declared he would not be attending the speech on Wednesday and that he would not tolerate “political rhetoric that will do nothing to bring peace in the region.”
Months after ordering Israel to halt the genocide in Gaza, the International Court of Justice declared its possession of Palestinian territory to be “illegal” on July 19.
