ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER Benjamin Netanyahu will today meet with US President Joe Biden to discuss the elusive ceasefire deal over the conflict in Gaza, as it approaches ten months of war.
So far, Netanyahu has said that any ceasefire in Gaza will take place only when Hamas is eradicated from Gaza, despite one of the three steps in the ceasefire plan ruling that the organisation would give up control of the region after a hostage swap.
Despite the US president’s shock election exit threatening to limit his leverage over the Israeli premier, White House security advisor Jake Sullivan believes today’s meeting, which was postponed by two days, is the best opportunity to secure the deal.
Relations between Biden and Netanyahu are tense over Israel’s conduct in the war sparked by Hamas’s 7 October attacks, despite the US president’s continued military and political support for Washington’s key Middle East ally.
And while Biden says he wants to secure a truce and hostage release deal in his last six months in office, Netanyahu may be tempted to wait until after his lame duck presidency and negotiate with his successor instead.
Netanyahu will also meet Vice President Kamala Harris – the likely new Democratic presidential nominee – at the White House on Thursday, one day after he gave a speech to the US Congress vowing “total victory” against Hamas.
But while US President Joe Biden has been very supportive of Israel publicly, he has expressed concern over the high civilian death toll from their ongoing operations in Gaza. Biden has stalled the delivery of 2,000 ton bombs to Israel as a result.
Netanyahu called for the aid to be fast-tracked yesterday, claiming US military aid could “dramatically expedite an end to the war in Gaza and help prevent a broader war in the Middle East”.
The Israeli PM previously said any peace in the region will only come after it has defeated Hamas. His call for support sparked a backlash from Democrats angry that there was little of substance in his speech about securing peace.
Influential former House speaker Nancy Pelosi called it “by far the worst presentation of any foreign dignitary” invited to speak before Congress.
During his speech, Netanyahu also condemned pro-Palestinian protesters who were outside the Capitol building in Washington, labelling them “useful idiots” for Iran.
Protests were not limited to outside the Congress chamber as the only Palestinian American lawmaker – Democrat Rashida Tlaib – held signs saying “guilty of genocide” and “war criminal” during Netanyahu’s address.
Inside the House of Representatives – one half of the main Capitol building – six protesters were arrested before Netanyahu began.
This is the first time Netanyahu has been outside of the Middle East since the conflict began and it is also the first international trip since the International Criminal Court moved to issue a warrant on him and Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar on war crimes charges.
It is also his first trip since the International Court of Justice last week ruled, for the first time, that Israeli settlements in Palestine are illegal under international law.
After the two leaders meet, Biden and Netanyahu will also meet the families of US hostages held in Gaza. The Israeli military announced this morning the recovery of the bodies of five people held in Gaza, in an operation in the city of Khan Yunis.
In a primetime speech explaining his decision on Sunday to bow out of the US presidential election, the 81-year-old Biden made clear that the conflict would remain a top priority.
“I’m going to keep working to end the war on Gaza, bring home all the hostages to bring peace and security to the Middle East and end this war,” Biden said in his address to the nation.
The US believe enough can be done to convince Netanyahu to commit to the deal that they claim was proposed by his Government. “The overriding focus of the meeting between President Biden and Prime Minister Netanyahu is going to be about the ceasefire and hostage deal,” Sullivan told the Aspen Security Form last week.
Sullivan added that Biden has done all that he can to get the world leaders to endorse the Israeli plan laid out by him in May and that all that is left is to get both sides to commit to the deal.
With reporting by © AFP 2024
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