In address to Congress, Netanyahu defends Israel’s conduct in Gaza war as Northwest Democrats call for peace

WASHINGTON – In a speech to a joint session of Congress on Wednesday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel forcefully defended his nation’s war against Hamas in response to the Palestinian armed group’s attack last year in which it killed nearly 1,200 people and took hundreds of hostages.

Netanyahu received a warm welcome from Northwest Republicans at a time when Israel faces growing international criticism over its response to the attack on Oct. 7. Some Northwest Democrats skipped the speech, calling for the return of hostages still held in Gaza and an end to the Israeli military campaign that has killed an estimated 39,000 Palestinians and displaced virtually all of the territory’s roughly 2.1 million residents.

Israel’s longest-serving prime minister, who has held the office six times beginning in 1996 and last addressed Congress in 2015, framed the war against Hamas as “a clash between barbarism and civilization” and promised that Israel would not relent until achieving “victory of good over evil.”

“If you remember one thing from this speech, remember this,” Netanyahu said. “Our enemies are your enemies, our fight is your fight, and our victory will be your victory.”

Vice President Kamala Harris, who would traditionally sit behind Netanyahu in her role as Senate president, missed the address in favor of a previously scheduled event. In a statement, the White House said Harris and President Joe Biden would meet Thursday with Netanyahu and the families of the hostages. Israel says 116 hostages remain in Gaza, including eight U.S. citizens.

Sen. Patty Murray, a Washington Democrat who is next in line to replace Harris as Senate president pro tempore, also skipped the event. In an interview Wednesday afternoon, Murray said her staff had met with hostages’ families on Tuesday and she watched Netanyahu’s entire speech from her office, finding that it “really ignored many of the facts on the ground.”

“Many of the people who’ve been talking to me have told me a very different story about what’s happening and the humanitarian crisis in Gaza,” said Murray. “And frankly, the families of the hostages that have been talking to us are really frustrated that they’re yet to have their loved ones come home and want him to do more.”

Sen. Jim Risch of Idaho, the top Republican on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said Netanyahu’s address was an important reminder “of the atrocities committed on October 7, the urgency of bringing all hostages home, and the need to eliminate Hamas as a military and political entity.”

“America is more than a fair-weather friend,” Risch said in a statement. “Our Israeli partners deserve unwavering American support as they continue the necessary work to bring all the hostages home, dismantle Hamas, and counter an increasingly aggressive Iranian regime. Any division between Israel and the United States is an opportunity for Hamas to continue terrorizing Israelis and Palestinians.”

Sen. Ben Cardin of Maryland, the Democratic chair of the Foreign Relations Committee, presided in place of Murray and issued a statement on Wednesday along with the chairs of the Senate Armed Services and Intelligence panels backing a proposed agreement that would end the war and release the remaining hostages.

Netanyahu’s government has rejected proposals that would allow the survival of Hamas, which functions as a terrorist group and Gaza’s government. Hamas leaders have insisted on a permanent ceasefire while privately telling allies the ongoing suffering of Palestinian civilians benefits the group politically, the Wall Street Journal reported in June.

“For Israel, every civilian death is a tragedy,” Netanyahu said. “For Hamas, it’s a strategy.”

Israel’s government claims that it warns civilians in Gaza to flee before it strikes an area where it believes Hamas fighters are hiding. But human rights groups accuse Israel of not doing enough to protect noncombatants. In the nearly 10 months of fighting, Palestinian civilians have been forced to move repeatedly around one of the most densely populated areas on earth.

After a temporary ceasefire deal saw Hamas release 50 hostages in exchange for 150 Palestinian prisoners, families of the remaining hostages have demanded a ceasefire that would free their loved ones. Instead, Israel’s military has sought to liberate them through military operations.

During his speech, Netanyahu put the spotlight on Noa Argamani, a young woman who was freed along with three other hostages in an Israeli raid in June. The Times of Israel reported that when Argamani met with Netanyahu on Monday, she told the prime minister the hardest moment of her eight months in captivity came when she heard him on the radio saying that the war would be long.

He didn’t mention that some 270 Palestinians were killed and 700 more were wounded in that operation, according to Gaza’s health ministry, which is controlled by Hamas. Biden and Republicans in Congress have cast doubt on the estimate, but the World Health Organization has said the number is reliable. Researchers have suggested the true death toll may be far higher due to disease, famine and bodies trapped under rubble that have not been counted.

Outside the Capitol, thousands of protesters called Netanyahu a war criminal and demanded his arrest. The International Criminal Court charged Netanyahu, along with Israel’s defense minister and three Hamas leaders, with war crimes in May. The United States has not ratified the court’s charter and Biden called its decision to charge the Israeli leaders “outrageous.”

Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Spokane, said the United States should always support Israel and must join Netanyahu “in meeting this moment with moral clarity.”

“Today, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delivered a passionate and inspirational address to Congress while anti-Israel protestors and terrorist sympathizers waved Hamas flags in the streets outside the Capitol,” she said in a statement. “He spoke with courage and conviction, exuding strength on behalf of his nation and the Jewish people, while underscoring our shared commitment to life, liberty, and democracy.”

Joint sessions of Congress, the most famous of which is the president’s annual state of the union address, often serve as a stage for a sort of performance for the speaker and the audience. The first chance to make a statement is simply the decision to show up.

Half of the 10 Democrats in Washington’s delegation skipped the event. In addition to Murray, Reps. Suzan DelBene of Medina, Rick Larsen of Everett, Pramila Jayapal of Seattle and Adam Smith of Bellevue chose not to attend.

The other half in attendance included Sen. Maria Cantwell and Reps. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez of southwest Washington, Kim Schrier of Sammamish, Derek Kilmer of Gig Harbor and Marilyn Strickland of Tacoma.

Every member of Idaho’s four-man, all-GOP delegation attended. So did McMorris Rodgers and her fellow Republican, Rep. Dan Newhouse of Sunnyside.

“Israel is the beacon of democracy and a critical ally of the United States in an otherwise volatile region,” Sen. Mike Crapo of Idaho said in a statement. “It is more important than ever that the United States honor and support our allies and diplomatic partners.”

Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky, the sole Republican who announced he would skip the event, called the speech “political theater” in a post on X.

“The purpose of having Netanyahu address Congress is to bolster his political standing in Israel and to quell int’l opposition to his war,” Massie wrote on the social media platform. “I don’t feel like being a prop so I won’t be attending.”

Smith, the top Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee, echoed that idea in an interview with the Washington Post on Tuesday.

“I’m more focused on the policies than the theater, which is why I wouldn’t have invited Netanyahu in the first place,” Smith said. “But once that was done, I’m not going to add to that. I’m going to stay focused on here’s what Israel should change about its policies going forward, so that we can have a stronger, better alliance and so that there can be a more peaceful future for the Israeli people.”

Correction: This story was updated on July 25, 2024, to clarify that Sen. Patty Murray’s staff met with the families of hostages on July 23. Murray had met with hostages’ families previously but didn’t do so on that date.