(Washington) Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will deliver a speech to the American Congress in Washington on July 24, a source told AFP on Thursday.
The invitation was sent to the Israeli leader at the end of May by the heads of Republican and Democratic elected officials, in the midst of the war in Gaza.
American media reported on Monday that Mr. Netanyahu was due to deliver this speech on June 13. But the Israeli prime minister’s office denied this information, indicating that the date had “not been finalized.”
The invitation comes after months of unease by US President Joe Biden’s administration over the conduct of Israel’s war in the Gaza Strip in response to the October 7 Hamas attack.
The US president has publicly stated his opposition to a large-scale ground offensive in Rafah where more than a million civilians are trapped, and has threatened to stop certain arms deliveries to Israel if his warning is not heeded.
PHOTO MIGUEL MEDINA, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
US President Joe Biden
This decision has sparked criticism in Washington from his Republican opponents and some Democrats, who accuse him of abandoning Israel.
Washington, however, remains Israel’s primary diplomatic and military supporter, facing increasing international pressure after nearly eight months of conflict causing a humanitarian catastrophe in the besieged Palestinian territory.
Joe Biden thus considered it “scandalous” that the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) is requesting the issuance of an arrest warrant against Benjamin Netanyahu for war crimes and crimes against humanity.
In their letter of invitation to Benjamin Netanyahu, the four leaders of the House and the Senate said they were “with the State of Israel in its fight against terrorism”.
In March, the leader of the Democratic majority in the Senate, Chuck Schumer, caused an outcry by declaring that the government coalition led by Mr. Netanyahu “no longer corresponded to the needs of Israel after October 7” and by calling for new elections in Israel.
In a statement released on Saturday, the Israeli leader said he was “delighted with the privilege of representing Israel before both houses of Congress and telling them the truth about our just war against those who seek to kill us.”