Netanyahu Offers Full-Throated Defense of Gaza War

WASHINGTON — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu forcefully defended Israel’s military campaign in the Gaza Strip during an address Wednesday to a joint meeting of Congress, in which he praised the Israel-U.S. alliance and sought to portray the war as a battle between good and evil, civilization and barbarism.

Netanyahu said the war against Hamas was part of a larger conflict between Iran and the United States, and he said America must stand with Israel to defend their common values.

“My friends, if you remember one thing, one thing from this speech, remember this,” Netanyahu said. “Our enemies are your enemies. Our fight is your fight. And our victory will be your victory.”

He also lavished praise on both President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump. He largely avoided talking about differences of opinion between himself and Biden and instead directed anger at anti-war protesters, whom he accused of sympathizing with terrorists and acting as “Iran’s useful idiots.”

He did not mention a cease-fire by name or discuss the status of the deal that Israel and Hamas have been negotiating for weeks and that the Biden administration desperately wants to get done. He did say that the war could end if Hamas surrendered, disarmed and returned hostages.

Netanyahu received repeated applause from Republican senators and representatives seated in the House chamber for the joint meeting, which dozens of Democratic lawmakers declined to attend, including two top senators and Rep. Nancy Pelosi, the former House speaker.

Vice President Kamala Harris declined to preside over the session, as is traditional for the vice president, citing a scheduling conflict. Nearly 100 House and Senate interns called in sick to protest the speech.

Netanyahu laid out a vision for the day after the war ends, saying that after Israel defeats Hamas “a new Gaza could emerge” and that Israel had no plans to “resettle” Gaza. That is an issue that Harris — now the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee — has been pressing since the war began.

Outside the Capitol, more than 5,000 pro-Palestinian demonstrators gathered to protest the speech, some wearing Palestinian scarves, chanting for the United States to stop arming Israel. Some carried signs calling Netanyahu a “war criminal” and the “prime minister of genocide.”

Here’s what to know:

— In Gaza: The death toll since the war began more than nine months ago has surpassed 39,000, according to health authorities in the enclave, whose numbers do not distinguish between civilians and combatants. Israel has been attacking areas of eastern Khan Younis, a city in southern Gaza, that it had previously designated as a humanitarian zone, saying that militants were firing rockets and Hamas was attempting to regroup there. More than 270 aid workers have been killed during the war, according to the United Nations.

— Cease-fire talks: While both sides have agreed to the broad outlines of a three-phase cease-fire deal, negotiations to end the war in Gaza and free the hostages appear to have reached a standstill. On Thursday, a delegation of Israeli negotiators is expected to meet with mediators abroad, according to Netanyahu’s office, but it is not clear where the meetings will be held or how high-level they will be. Israel says it will only agree to a permanent cease-fire after Hamas’ elimination and the return of the 120 living and dead hostages in Gaza. Hamas has said it will not return any of the hostages unless Israel provides a path to a permanent cease-fire. At the same time, Hamas has resisted calls to abandon its control of the Gaza Strip, which it has ruled since 2007

— Meeting candidates: Netanyahu will meet with Harris in Washington on Thursday, after a separate meeting with Biden. The two men will also meet with family members of Americans held hostage by Hamas, the White House said. The Israeli leader will then travel to Florida to meet with Trump at his private club, Mar-a-Lago, on Friday. The Israeli leader was invited to Washington weeks ago, before Biden’s decision not to seek reelection. The relationship between Biden and Netanyahu has grown testier in recent months as the war has dragged on.

This article originally appeared in The New York Times .