Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is set to visit Washington this week to meet with U.S. President Joe Biden and deliver a speech in the U.S. Congress.
According to reports from Reuters, Netanyahu will meet with President Biden on Tuesday, July 23, and deliver a speech in the U.S. Congress on Wednesday.
This is Netanyahu’s first visit to the United States, Israel’s most important international ally, since his reelection as prime minister at the end of 2022. President Biden’s surprise announcement on July 21 that he will not seek reelection has drawn significant attention to this visit.
Netanyahu’s speech in the U.S. Congress is expected to focus on how Israel and the United States can coordinate their responses to the conflict in the Middle East.
Pressure is mounting on Netanyahu to end the conflict in Gaza following calls from the United States. At the same time, there are demands from the Israeli people to bring back all hostages, regardless of their condition, while the U.S. government is increasingly focused on the 2024 presidential election.
It is unclear if Netanyahu will meet with the Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump during this visit. The two were close allies during Trump’s presidency, with Trump stating that the Gaza conflict must end as soon as possible following the outbreak of hostilities.
Speaking at a joint session of the U.S. Congress is considered a great honor reserved for the United States’ closest allies. This invitation to Netanyahu was led by the Republican leadership in the House of Representatives, who believe that the U.S. should provide more support to Israel.
This will be Netanyahu’s second speech in the U.S. Congress as an invited guest. During his speech in 2015, he criticized then-U.S. President Barack Obama’s approach toward reaching a nuclear agreement with Iran.
On Wednesday, the U.S. police are anticipating a “large number of protesters” gathering outside the U.S. Capitol to protest Israel’s military operation in Gaza against Hamas. The police have stated that they are prepared to handle the situation but have not identified any specific threats.
Last October, the Palestinian militant group Hamas launched attacks on Israel, triggering the conflict between Israel and Hamas. The Israeli military then entered Gaza to target Hamas militants.
Since the start of the conflict, the Biden administration has been fully supporting Israel’s right to self-defense while pressuring Netanyahu’s government to resume negotiations with Hamas, achieve a ceasefire, and end the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
At the same time, Netanyahu is facing internal pressure in Israel. Protesters are demanding that the Israeli government quickly reach a ceasefire agreement with Hamas and rescue all hostages.
On October 7, 2023, Hamas killed approximately 1,200 people in their attack on Israel and kidnapped over 250 people to Gaza, holding them hostage. To this day, around 120 hostages remain missing. Gaza health authorities reported that Israel’s actions in Gaza have resulted in nearly 39,000 Palestinian casualties.