Israeli occupation Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is set to meet with US President Joe Biden on Thursday at the White House, according to a US official on Monday.

Last Wednesday, it was announced that Biden had contracted COVID-19 and remained in his beach house in Delaware. However, it has been reported that the US president will be back in Washington by Tuesday ahead of Netanyahu's address in front of a joint session at the US Congress on Wednesday.

Reportedly, Netanyahu will be meeting Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris separately. Talks with Biden are expected to touch on the war on Palestine where the two leaders will discuss ways to reach a ceasefire in Palestine's Gaza Strip, with topics set to include Iran and others.

In turn, a Harris aide announced that the vice president, who also became the top Democratic presidential candidate following Biden's announcement of stepping down, stated that Harris intends to stress the importance of bringing the war to an end in the Strip. 

The aide explained that for Harris, the end of the war on the Gaza Strip must come in such a way that "Israel is secure, all hostages are released, the suffering of Palestinian civilians in Gaza ends, and the Palestinian people can enjoy their right to dignity, freedom, and self-determination."

Moreover, Politico reported that Netanyahu had also requested to meet with Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump in person while in the US this week.

Senator Benjamin Cardin of Maryland will preside over Netanyahu’s address to a joint meeting of Congress on Wednesday, instead of Vice President Kamala Harris. An aide to Harris explained that her non-appearance is due to a prior commitment in Indianapolis and should not be seen as a shift in her support for "Israel’s" security.

Typically, the vice president, as the president of the Senate, sits next to the House speaker during such meetings to welcome foreign leaders, showing support and endorsement. This week, Democrats have chosen Senator Cardin, who chairs the Foreign Relations Committee, to join Speaker Mike Johnson and stand behind Mr. Netanyahu, according to sources cited by The New York Times.

Eight Democratic Congress members boycotting Netanyahu speech

Far more Democrats could skip Benjamin Netanyahu's speech to Congress on July 24 than the 58 who did the last time he spoke, Newsweek reported earlier in June.

US Senator Elizabeth Warren announced in June that she would not attend Netanyahu's presentation before Congress on July 24 due to the "humanitarian catastrophe he created," referring to the war on Gaza.

Warren slammed Netanyahu's dismissal of US policy regarding a "two-state" solution while responding to reporters, saying, "He has also made clear that he does not support US policy for a two-state solution that will let the people of Israel and Palestinians develop their own nation self-determination, live with dignity."

She further stressed the need for a ceasefire and a prisoner exchange deal, the flow of humanitarian aid into Gaza, and constructive negotiations to achieve a "peaceful solution" by "both parties". 

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