Netanyahu to address US Congress for fourth time
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House Speaker Mike Johnson extended the official invitation to Netanyahu on Friday to address a joint session of Congress.
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Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in 'Tel Aviv' on October 18, 2023.(AFP)
The Israeli Occupation's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office announced that he has accepted an offer to address both chambers of Congress, making him the first foreign leader to do so four times. Netanyahu previously addressed Congress in 2015, 2011, and 1996.
A statement quoted him expressing he was "thrilled by the privilege of representing Israel before both houses of Congress, and of presenting, to the representatives of the American people and the entire world, the truth about our righteous war against those who seek our destruction."
In the United States, leaders from both the Republican and Democratic parties formally invited Netanyahu to speak before Congress.
House Speaker Mike Johnson extended the official invitation to Netanyahu on Friday to address a joint session of Congress. The invitation bears the signatures of all four Congressional leaders: Johnson, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries.
The letter reads: "We join the State of Israel in your fight against terrorism, especially as Hamas continues to hold American and Israeli citizens and its leaders endanger regional stability."
It continues, "Therefore, on behalf of the bipartisan leadership of the US House of Representatives and the US Senate, we would like to invite you to address a joint session of Congress."
A source familiar with the situation, as reported by The Hill, noted that the speech is expected to occur "within the next eight weeks or immediately after the August recess."
Biden lays out three-phase ceasefire plan, corners Netanyahu
US President Joe Biden laid out a new proposal that involves releasing Israeli captives in exchange for a ceasefire in Gaza.
Biden claimed that this is the most effective step toward de-escalating the ongoing war, adding, "With a ceasefire, that aid could be safely and effectively distributed to all who need it."
"As someone who's had a lifelong commitment to Israel, as the only American president who has ever gone to Israel at a time of war, as someone who just sent the US forces to directly defend Israel when it was attacked by Iran, I ask you to take a step back, think what will happen if this moment is lost," he stressed. "We can't lose this moment."
"It's time for this war to end and for the day after to begin," emphasized Biden, who is under the pressure of an election year and amid the ongoing Israeli aggression, which has persisted for eight months.
According to a report in the Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth, Biden's speech is evidence that he is frustrated with the strategy of "absolute victory" and calls for a prolonged war, in addition to concern about the position of extremists in Netanyahu’s government, at a time close to the resignation of Minister Benny Gantz,” noting that he did not mention pressure on Hamas but rather urged "Israel" to accept the deal.
The families of Israeli prisoners in the Gaza Strip demanded Saturday that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accept the proposal announced by US President Joe Biden regarding a ceasefire.
The families accused the "Extremists in the government" of sacrificing the captives to prolong the war, according to Israeli Channel 12,
They called on the Israeli public to accept the deal proposed by Biden, affirming that it was "forbidden to lose this moment," and that Biden for the first time gave "real hope."
