Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s visit to Washington has fuelled the momentum to resume the war on Gaza. The show of support by US congressmen testified to the lack of any serious effort to achieve a ceasefire or a prisoner exchange deal.

Netanyahu’s statement displayed the strength of US-Israel relations, which transcend differences between their leaders and any US decisions that might negatively affect Israeli national security.

Some observers noted that the occasion was essentially an official American endorsement of Netanyahu, despite the internal and external pressures he is facing. This is notwithstanding the disappointing results and wider negative repercussions of the Israeli war on Gaza, now in its 10th month, which has caused one of the worst humanitarian disasters in modern history.

“Since the onset of the war on Gaza, Netanyahu has aborted US efforts to achieve a ceasefire, with his relationship with President Joe Biden becoming tense,” analyst Mohsen Abu Ramadan says. “Netanyahu deliberately used his speech to Congress to subtly rebuke Biden and his administration, despite lauding US-Israeli relations. He avoided sharp differences with Vice President Kamala Harris in an attempt to mend the strained relationship.”

In Washington, Netanyahu reiterated his broken record about the war, his plans for post-war Gaza, Iran, and the US-Israel alliance, failing to say anything about a ceasefire or the potential deal that Israel and Hamas have been negotiating for weeks, which the Biden administration is eager to implement, writer Nidal Khadra argues:

“Netanyahu maintained his stance that the war could end if Hamas surrendered, disarmed, and returned the hostages. He also framed the war as a battle between good and evil, civilisation and barbarism. Netanyahu’s speech only briefly mentioned Lebanon’s Hizbullah group, even though the risk of a full-scale war between the two sides is now higher than ever.”

Khadra went on to explain that Netanyahu’s visit aimed to balance relations between Democrats and Republicans, paving the way to a strong link with the next US president regardless of the outcome of elections. Netanyahu seeks to ensure these relations are based on open, unrestricted American financial, economic, and military support, avoiding the tensions that have characterised his relations with Biden due to the war.

Despite receiving a warm reception from US lawmakers, mostly Republicans, who gave him more than 90 standing ovations during his speech, Netanyahu did not attract much attention outside Congress, due to the heated presidential race and Biden’s decision to drop out and endorse his vice president Harris against Republican candidate Donald Trump.

Despite his enthusiastic reception, discussions in some meetings were not to Netanyahu’s liking, Abu Ramadan noted. These include the meeting with Biden, who discussed the possibility of reaching an agreement to stop the war in Gaza. His controversial meeting with Harris and his meeting with Trump, who vowed to end the war on Gaza at the beginning of his term if elected, were a slap in the face of the Israeli premier.

“Netanyahu was keen to appeal to Congress with a speech stressing the shared destiny of the two countries,” said Abu Ramadan, “saying ‘We are not only protecting ourselves. We are protecting you... Our enemies are your enemies, our fight is your fight, and our victory will be your victory.’”

Khadra believes that while US political leaders, both Democratic and Republican, expressed strong support for Israel during Netanyahu’s visit, they also strongly criticised him for resuming the war on Gaza and called on him to end it. For Netanyahu, this criticism implies a dilemma: either his fragile government coalition collapses by making a deal with Hamas, or he continues the military operation, which even his closest foreign allies oppose.

Although Netanyahu’s defence of the war was warmly applauded in Congress, he also received a clear message from the leaders of both the Democratic and Republican parties to stop the war, Abu Khadra says. This message was evident when Harris told Netanyahu: “Let’s get the deal done so we can get a ceasefire,” and in Trump, during an interview with Fox News, calling for an end to the war and getting “it done quickly”.

Analyst Tamara Haddad agrees with this assessment: “Netanyahu’s visit showed the strong support Israel still enjoys in Washington, but it also highlighted the impatience of US political leaders with the war in Gaza. In his speech Netanyahu therefore stressed that Israel’s victory would be a victory for the US and that for the forces of civilisation to prevail, the US and Israel must remain united and Washington must support the efforts to release the hostages held by Hamas.”

Haddad believes that Netanyahu’s speech aimed to appeal to both Republicans and Democrats in Congress by highlighting the security threats Israel faces from Lebanon, Iraq, Syria, and Iran, to increase the provision of weapons to Israel and ensure continued support. She noted that Netanyahu is exploiting the intense electoral battle between Democrats and Republicans following Biden’s withdrawal from the race. “Netanyahu sought support for his war with Lebanon, wanting both weapons and a green light from the US to continue the war if political and diplomatic efforts fail,” she said.

She pointed out that Netanyahu avoided addressing the criticism directed at Israel or the humanitarian crisis in Gaza. Instead, he limited his discussion of Gaza’s future to establishing a civil administration run by Palestinians who do not seek to destroy Israel, without mentioning the two-state solution, thus ignoring the US vision of a diplomatic solution based on this framework.

According to Hani Al-Dali, an expert in resistance affairs, “Hamas believes Netanyahu’s visit to Washington gave him the opportunity to polish his image and cover up mass killings and ethnic cleansing in Gaza. Netanyahu’s claims about efforts to return hostages in Gaza were completely misleading, as he has thwarted all efforts aimed at ending the war and concluding a prisoner release deal.”

He added, “Hamas believes the US is providing full political and military support to Israel, giving its government the necessary cover to evade punishment, and using the Congressional platform to absolve war criminals instead of holding them accountable for their crimes against humanity. This, according to Hamas, proves the US is a full accomplice in the horrific violations committed in Gaza.”

Israeli observers have noted indications that Harris might spearhead a change in the American position towards unconditional support for Israel if she is elected president. An article in Israel Hayom described Harris as Biden’s “bad cop” regarding Israeli war policy on Gaza.

Israeli newspapers were quick to analyse Harris’ statements, interpreting them as an attempt to adjust the American position on the war in Gaza to win the votes of Arab and Muslim Americans. The Israeli press criticised Harris’s focus on the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and her criticism of Israel for exacerbating the crisis. They denounced her statement that she would not rule out any options if Israel ignored her warning against launching a comprehensive attack on Rafah in southern Gaza. Biden followed through on Harris’s warning by withholding a shipment of heavy bombs to Israel.

Israeli politicians, media professionals, experts, and families of prisoners gave mixed reactions to those US moves. The families of hostages were divided into two groups: a few dozen watched Netanyahu’s speech on television, while about 10,000 gathered before a large screen showing the speech with the sound turned off. Relatives of the hostages gave speeches during Netanyahu’s address to Congress to express their lack of confidence in him.

Netanyahu’s lips moved, and members of Congress stood and applauded, but the families of hostages refused to listen, saying it didn’t matter what he said because he would not announce a deal. The families issued a statement denouncing the speech, saying they expect Netanyahu to ignore their cause and their pain, and accusing him of not being serious about the proposed exchange deal.

Far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich praised Netanyahu’s visit, writing on X: “The Jewish and Israeli heart in all of us is moved and filled with pride by the high standing of the prime minister, who represents us commendably and faithfully, with sharp and clear words, and by the warm reception reflecting a deep and wonderful partnership between the State of Israel and the United States of America.”

Transportation Minister Miri Regev wrote that Israel and the US share the same enemy, struggle, and desired victory. She praised Netanyahu’s words for their “greatness, wisdom, and determination,” calling him a leader the world envies and urging people to support him.

Meanwhile, opposition leader Yair Lapid criticised Netanyahu, stating, “Disgrace! An hour of talking without uttering the single sentence: ‘There will be a kidnapping deal.’” Former War Cabinet member Benny Gantz stressed the importance of remembering the more than 100 hostages in Gaza and the necessity of making the decisions required to return them, even at a heavy price.

Writer and broadcaster Aryeh Golan condemned Netanyahu’s speech to the Americans as arrogant, questioning the reasonableness of telling Americans that Israelis are protecting them and comparing 7 October to 11 September. He suggested that Netanyahu should have been more humble and wondered how Trump would deal with Netanyahu’s boasting.

Barak Ravid, a political commentator on Walla website, remarked that Netanyahu presented an overly optimistic picture of the war in Gaza, misleading listeners into believing that absolute victory was near. He criticised Netanyahu for not mentioning the political, security, and military failures that led to the war and for not informing US representatives that “the largest massacre of Jews since the Holocaust” occurred under his leadership.

* A version of this article appears in print in the 1 August, 2024 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly