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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed a joint session of Congress on Wednesday to defend the ongoing war on Gaza as thousands of people outside protested his appearance. The speech came two months after Karim Khan, the chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, announced he was seeking an arrest warrant for Netanyahu for committing war crimes in Gaza. Over 100 Democrats, including Vice President Kamala Harris, skipped the speech, but those in attendance gave Netanyahu numerous standing ovations as he painted a distorted picture of what’s happening in Gaza, making no mention of efforts to reach a ceasefire or the more than 16,000 Palestinian children killed in Israel’s assault. Foreign policy analyst Phyllis Bennis says the speech was “horrifying,” but says it showed that “support for Israel has become a thoroughly partisan issue.” Bennis adds that peace activists in the U.S. have built a broad consensus against the war on Gaza and military support for Israel, and says Vice President Kamala Harris has an opportunity to chart a new path on Middle East policy as she runs for president.
Transcript
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NERMEEN SHAIKH: Thousands of protesters took to the streets of Washington, D.C., Wednesday as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed a joint session of Congress. Netanyahu had been invited by Republican and Democratic congressional leaders.
The speech came two months after Karim Khan, the chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, announced he was seeking an arrest warrant for Netanyahu for committing war crimes in Gaza. During his speech, Netanyahu thanked the U.S. for its support and defended Israel’s actions in Gaza.
PRIME MINISTER BENJAMIN NETANYAHU: The prosecutor of the International Criminal Court has shamefully accused Israel of deliberately starving the people of Gaza. This is utter, complete nonsense! It’s a complete fabrication. Israel has enabled more than 40,000 aid trucks to enter Gaza. That’s half a million tons of food! And that’s more than for 3,000 calories for every man, woman and child in Gaza. If there are Palestinians in Gaza who aren’t getting enough food, it’s not because Israel is blocking it. It’s because Hamas is stealing it! So much for that lie.
But here’s another. The ICC prosecutor accuses Israel of deliberately targeting civilians. What in God’s green Earth is he talking about? The IDF has dropped millions of flyers, sent millions of text messages, made hundreds of thousands of phone calls to get Palestinian civilians out of harm’s way. But at the same time, Hamas — Hamas does everything in its power to put Palestinian civilians in harm’s way.
AMY GOODMAN: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaking Wednesday in his fourth address to a joint session of Congress. During the speech, he made no mention of the more than 16,000 Palestinian children killed by Israel since October 7th. Netanyahu’s critics said he repeatedly distorted the true picture of what’s happening in Gaza. The U.N. says 500 aid trucks are needed every day as Gaza faces famine. On an average day, Israel allows in just over a quarter of the trucks needed. Netanyahu also never mentioned the word “ceasefire” during his speech.
More than a hundred lawmakers, mostly Democrats, skipped Netanyahu’s address, including Senators Dick Durbin, majority whip; Chris Van Hollen; Jeff Merkley; Patty Murray; Elizabeth Warren; and Bernie Sanders. Vice President Kamala Harris declined to preside over the Senate chamber during his address. She instead was in Indianapolis.
Michigan Democrat Rashida Tlaib, the only Palestinian American in Congress, opted to attend, but protested Netanyahu by holding up a sign that read “guilty of genocide” on one side and “war criminal” on the other.
Ahead of Netanyahu’s address, Democratic Congressmember Cori Bush discussed why she was boycotting the speech.
REP. CORI BUSH: It’s absolutely shameful that after the murder of over 39,000 Palestinians, human beings, after the repeated bombing of hospitals, after witnessing the bombing of religious institutions, schools, humanitarian convoys, refugee camps, and fathers collecting their children’s remains in plastic bags, holding their beheaded children, that my colleagues in Congress choose to celebrate Prime Minister Netanyahu, a whole war criminal, by bestowing him the honor of addressing Congress. Because standing up for human rights is more than a talking point to me, I’m boycotting his address.
NERMEEN SHAIKH: Outside the Capitol, thousands took part in protests calling for Netanyahu’s arrest and for a U.S. arms embargo on Israel. Emerson Wolfe came to the protest from Grand Rapids, Michigan.
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