Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called for the formation of a “new alliance” between Israel and Arab countries to counter Iran and its network of terrorist organizations.
“The new alliance I envision would be a natural extension of the groundbreaking Abraham Accords,” Netanyahu told a joint session of Congress. “Those accords saw peace forged between Israel and four Arab countries, and they were supported by Republicans and Democrats alike. … I have a name for this new alliance. I think we should call it the Abraham Alliance.”
Netanyahu applauded former President Donald Trump for the initial launch of those accords, the first of which were signed in 2020, after thanking President Joe Biden for enlisting key Arab states in a multinational effort to repel a barrage of missiles that Iran fired at Israel in April. Yet he vented his frustration with progressive criticism of Israel’s conduct of the war in Gaza, which he cast just one arena of a multifront conflict that Iran is waging against “Israel and our Arab friends” and the United States.
“Iran sees America as its greatest enemy,” Netanyahu said. “But Iran understands that to truly challenge America, it must first conquer the Middle East. And for this, it uses its many proxies, including the Houthis, Hezbollah, and Hamas. Yet in the heart of the Middle East, standing in Iran’s way is one proud pro-American democracy — my country, the state of Israel.”
Netanyahu arrived in Washington, D.C., at a fraught moment in both Israel and the U.S. Biden’s acquiescence to widespread demands that he drop out of the 2024 presidential election resulted in the abrupt emergence of Vice President Kamala Harris as the Democratic Party standard-bearer, with a political imperative to consolidate the support of Arab American Democratic voters frustrated by the administration’s support for Israel. And Netanyahu’s negotiations with Hamas over a ceasefire deal have disappointed the families of Israeli hostages held by the terrorist group, as he is perceived of slow-walking those talks for political reasons.
“Benjamin Netanyahu, I expected, hoped, wished that you would open your speech with ‘We have a signed deal.’ But again and again, you’re not doing what you should have done 292 days ago — bring your citizens home,” Nissan Kalderon, whose brother Ofer was seized on Oct. 7, said after the speech. “A leader must know when to stop everything and do just one thing — bring everyone back immediately.”
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
Biden and Harris, who are scheduled to meet Netanyahu during his trip, have signaled their intent to insist to him that “it is time for the war to end” — a development that their administration maintains is a prerequisite for the finalization of talks to normalize diplomatic relations between Saudi Arabia and Israel. Netanyahu, for his part, emphasized his willingness to continue the fight.
“That victory is in sight,” he said. “Israel’s defeat of Hamas will be a powerful blow to Iran’s axis of terror.”
