JERUSALEM: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will meet with US President Joe Biden in Washington on Tuesday, his office said on Sunday.
“Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's meeting with US President Joe Biden will take place on Tuesday at noon,” said a statement from Netanyahu's office. In addition, the Israeli head of state will fly to the USA on Monday.
Netanyahu will deliver a landmark speech to the U.S. Congress on Wednesday, standing up to intense pressure to quickly reach a ceasefire agreement with Hamas in the Gaza war.
Netanyahu, Israel's longest-serving prime minister, will be the first foreign head of state to address a joint session of the two chambers four times – overtaking Britain's Winston Churchill, who spoke three times.
But analysts say the Gaza war has created worrying tensions between Israel and the United States, its main military and diplomatic backer, since the October 7 Hamas attacks.
Washington fears negative reactions due to the increasing number of civilian casualties in the Gaza Strip. In Israel, protests by families of Hamas hostages are also causing Netanyahu headaches.
Biden and some Israeli ministers believe an agreement is possible through Qatari, Egyptian and US mediators. A plan outlined in May called for a six-week ceasefire in which some Israeli hostages would be exchanged for Palestinians held in Israeli prisons.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Friday that negotiators were “within the 10-yard line and moving toward the goal line.”
However, Hamas accused Netanyahu of trying to block an agreement, and Blinken said he wanted to “get the agreement across the finish line” when Netanyahu was in Washington.
An expected meeting between Netanyahu and US President Joe Biden has still not been confirmed.
Israel has intensified its air strikes on Gaza in recent weeks and Netanyahu insisted that only military pressure could free the hostages and defeat Hamas.
“This double pressure does not delay the agreement – it moves it forward,” Netanyahu told troops in the Gaza Strip on Thursday.
The October 7 attack on Israel killed 1,195 people, most of them civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli figures. Hamas militants also took 251 hostages, 116 of whom are still in Gaza, including 42 who the Israeli military says are dead.
According to the Health Ministry of the Hamas-ruled territory, at least 38,919 people, mostly civilians, were killed in Israel's retaliatory campaign in Gaza.
Publicly, Biden has expressed strong support for Israel, but he expressed concern about an offensive on the southern city of Rafah in May and temporarily suspended the delivery of heavy bombs to Israel. The embargo on the delivery of 2,000-pound bombs remains in place.
“The atmosphere has never been so tense,” said Middle East expert Steven Cook of the Council on Foreign Relations.
“There are clearly tensions in relations, particularly between the White House and the Israeli prime minister,” Cook said in a comment.
While US Republicans have pushed to invite Netanyahu to address Congress, he has lost support among Democrats.
A Jewish senator, Democrat Brian Schatz of Hawaii, announced he would boycott Wednesday's speech, saying he would not listen to “political rhetoric that will do nothing to bring peace to the region.”
After being invited back to the congress, Netanyahu said he would “expose the truth about our just war against those who want to destroy us.”
Cook said Netanyahu had two goals with his trip to Washington.
First, to show that he has not “undermined” Israel’s relations with the United States.
Netanyahu will also seek to “shift the conversation away from the conflict in Gaza and toward the threat that Iran and its proxies pose to Israel and the United States,” Cook added.
Much attention will be paid to whether Netanyahu meets with Donald Trump or someone close to the Republican presidential candidate.
Despite the tensions, the United States defended Israeli interests and played a key role in mediation efforts. Military relations also remained strong, officials said.
Washington's support could prove crucial as Israel faces increasing international criticism over mounting humanitarian losses after nearly 300 days of war.
In May, the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court asked judges to issue arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant. Arrest warrants were also requested for three Hamas leaders.
The Republican majority in the House of Representatives called for sanctions against the ICC.
The International Court of Justice declared Israel's occupation of Palestinian territories illegal on July 19 and in February called on the country to refrain from any acts of genocide in its Gaza offensive.
