In a speech to American politicians, the Israeli prime minister says the war against Hamas is “civilization versus barbarism” and receives warm applause
The Prime Minister of Israel, Binyamin Netanyahudefended his conduct in the war in the Gaza Strip speech inside United States Congress this Wednesday, 24. For about 40 minutes, the prime minister constructed a rhetoric of the war as “civilization and barbarism”, claimed that Israel’s actions were in self-defense, and thanked American politicians for their support of the war. He received a standing ovation for much of the time.
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The speech comes during Netanyahu’s visit to the United States, his first trip abroad since the current war in the Gaza Strip began on October 6 last year. In nine months of conflict, dozens of people remain hostages of Hamas and nearly 40,000 Palestinians have died as a result of Israeli attacks, most of them children and women.
The prime minister focused on praising the leadership between Israel and the US and avoided touching on domestic American politics, praising both Joe Biden and Donald Trump and leaving aside his differences with them. He did not mention Vice President Kamala Harris, with whom he will meet on Thursday to discuss the future of the conflict and who is now running for president.
Much of the speech was spent arguing that the United States and Israel have a common cause in the Middle East, with Iran as its greatest enemy and democracy as its defense. “Our enemies are your enemies,” he said. “Our victory will be your victory.”
The prime minister also called for more American military aid to Israel, noting the country’s role in the past in the United States in providing advanced weapons used “to protect American soldiers,” and in providing intelligence on the Middle East. “We help keep American soldiers on the ground (in the Middle East) by protecting our common interests,” he said.
He then emphatically said to urge the shipment of weapons: “Give us the tools faster and we will finish the job faster.” The ceasefire plan and the hostage release agreement were not directly mentioned in the speech.
Despite disagreements with the Biden administration during the war in Gaza, Netanyahu did not criticize the president. On the contrary, he praised him for his quick response in support of Israel after the Hamas attack. There was repeated praise for Donald Trump, who during his administration recognized Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and moved the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, something never recognized by the international community, including the United Nations.
The Israeli prime minister first referred to Biden at the beginning of his speech, thanking him for working with Israel both in the release of the hostages and in providing military support, with the dispatch of two aircraft carriers. “He came to Israel to be with us in our darkest moments,” he said. He later thanked the president for being a “proud Irish-American Zionist.”
Bibi also spent part of his speech criticizing the International Criminal Court, which issued an arrest warrant against him in May for war crimes in Gaza, such as attacks on civilians and humanitarian convoys. “They are trying to shackle Israel’s hands,” he said, adding that the United States could be the next target. He also criticized allegations of genocide.
The prime minister also spoke about Israel’s post-war plans. He reiterated that he has no intention of occupying the Gaza Strip and that “a new Gaza could emerge,” but did not provide further details.
Quotes about hostages and soldiers
Netanyahu appeared at the speech wearing a yellow ribbon pin on his lapel, a symbol of the Gaza hostage liberation movement, accompanied by freed hostages and Israeli soldiers. At the beginning of his speech, he introduced the Israelis accompanying him, including soldiers of Ethiopian origin and another from the Bedouin community, and described them as heroes. “These are the soldiers of Israel, unyielding and fearless,” he said.
Mentioning the hostages, he referred to Noa Argamani, recently released and accompanying him to the US, and the Americans who remain captured by Hamas. Their families were present at the Congress.
The speech was met with warm applause from politicians present throughout the course. Despite the applause, the support was not unconditional. In one of the speech’s excerpts, Democratic congresswoman Rashida Tlaib, the daughter of Palestinian immigrants, held up a sign with the phrases “War Criminal” and “Guilty of Genocide” to protest Netanyahu. The act was met with boos from Netanyahu supporters, who did not mention the sign.
Protests
Outside, protesters staged a series of protests a block from the Capitol, which spread to four blocks of the surrounding area, the newspaper reported. The New York Times. Riot police closely followed the protesters throughout the demonstration. Protesters marched through the streets of the Capitol chanting “Free Palestine from the river to the sea.”
In criticizing the pro-Palestinian protests, Netanyahu delegitimized the protesters without evidence, calling them Tehran-funded and “useful idiots,” and then received one of the longest send-offs. There is no evidence that the protests were funded by the Iranian government.
Source: Terra
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