The speech delivered by Benjamin Netanyahu in Congress reveals, among other things, the cunning game played by the Israeli Prime Minister against naive American politicians who are willing to believe everything he says. However, the speech particularly highlights why the Gaza war will continue and why there is a substantial risk of another war, taking a broader form from southern Lebanon.
It is essential to note Netanyahu's ability to influence both houses of Congress, despite a significant number of Democratic members boycotting and criticizing the speech. Among those boycotting was Nancy Pelosi, the former Speaker of the House and still a prominent leader within the Democratic Party. Additionally, one cannot overlook the demonstrations supporting Hamas outside the Capitol, where slogans were raised and chants were launched that served the Israeli right, which believes solely in one political project: settlement as a means of permanently seizing East Jerusalem and the West Bank, occupied for 57 years.
Netanyahu addressed Congress at a time when the United States is suffering from political vacuums—one in the White House and another in Congress, in both the Senate and the House of Representatives. Members present stood up to applaud nearly fifty times for lies uttered by the Israeli Prime Minister in defense of continuing his war on Gaza, ignoring the fact that he has exploited the "Hamas" card for years to entrench the Palestinian division and eliminate the idea of a two-state option altogether. This idea has been rejected by Hamas at all times.
Since Ariel Sharon returned to power 23 years ago, the Israeli right has claimed that "there is no Palestinian partner for negotiations." Thus, there is no longer a peace process in the region. Netanyahu succeeded in Congress, especially since very few members possess the ability to counter the lies he presented with facts and figures.
Since October 8, the day after the "Aqsa Flood" attack carried out by Hamas, Israel launched a war on Gaza, not just Hamas. This war has led to the displacement of most of Gaza's population. Moreover, the Israeli army, which Netanyahu claimed adheres to strict ethical rules, did not distinguish between men and women, between combatants and non-combatants, or between the elderly and infants. Entire families have been wiped out. Were it not for U.S. pressure preventing a repetition of the massacres committed in Rafah, Israel would have killed more Palestinian families already suffering under Hamas rule in Gaza.
Netanyahu attempted to connect America and Israel, suddenly awakening to the "Iranian project" and the relationship between Hamas and the Islamic Republic—a long-standing, organic relationship. He ignored the fact that the suicide attacks carried out by Hamas were part of a war against the Oslo Accords and the peace process that followed the signing of the agreement 31 years ago. Those operations were the fruit of Iranian support for Hamas.
There was no one in Congress to tell the Prime Minister that his talk about "eliminating extremism" applies to him personally. No one pointed out that his incitement against Yitzhak Rabin contributed to the latter's assassination by an Israeli extremist named Yigal Amir. This killer still governs Israel from his prison. He is just a slightly different version of Netanyahu. The difference between them is that Netanyahu knows how to address Americans and how to exploit the absence of U.S. leadership after Joe Biden has become nothing more than a lame duck.
What Netanyahu does not dare to say, or rather what American senators and representatives do not dare to say, is that the absence of a viable Israeli political project will lead to devastation in the region. A policy cannot be built on settlement and entrenching occupation, nor can there be normal relations between Israel and its neighbors. Suddenly, the Prime Minister remembered the "Abraham Accords." Who has obstructed normalization with Arab countries by every possible means other than Netanyahu, who has done everything to challenge peace? What peace project? Is it reasonable and acceptable to have peace under occupation?
The cunning game may allow Netanyahu to remain in power for several months, especially with Donald Trump returning to the White House. Even if Kamala Harris wins, political vacuums will continue to dominate the White House as long as the core issue of the Palestinian people and their legitimate rights is absent from U.S. politics and decision-makers in Washington, particularly in Congress. This situation in Washington is alarming, where no one tells the Prime Minister that "enough" means enough.
Netanyahu has demonstrated his capabilities in Washington and in Congress, but what comes next? Like Hamas, the Prime Minister lacks any political project. This simply means that the war will persist in the absence of an American president willing to confront Israel with the only unwavering truth: the undeniable truth of an independent Palestinian state that must be established under Arab and international guarantees that confirm its peaceful nature. Meanwhile, the role of Hezbollah and its control over Lebanon remains a separate issue from the war in Gaza!
