Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-NY, fiercely criticized Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s upcoming handle to Congress subsequent month, calling him a “conflict prison,” and accusing him of getting no regard for US legislation.
Home and Senate leaders from either side of the aisle have invited Netanyahu to handle Congress on July 24, delivering the newest present of wartime help for the longtime ally regardless of mounting political divisions over Israel’s navy assault on Hamas in Gaza.
Home Speaker Mike Johnson, a Republican, and Senate Majority Chief Chuck Schumer, a Democrat, together with Senate Republican chief Mitch McConnell and Home Democratic chief Hakeem Jeffries, signed the letter extending the invitation to Netanyahu. They stated the supply was supposed to “spotlight America’s solidarity with Israel.”
However not all members of Congress are in favor of the go to, together with Ocasio-Cortez.
“This man shouldn’t be addressing Congress. He’s a conflict prison,” Ocasio-Cortez wrote in a put up on X. “And he actually has no regard for US legislation, which is explicitly designed to stop US weapons from facilitating human rights abuses. His invitation must be revoked. It ought to have by no means been despatched within the first place.”
The consultant and different progressive “Squad” Democrats are livid that their leaders agreed to ask Netanyahu to handle Congress.
The invitation spurred pushback from the left, the place a rising variety of Democrats have voiced criticism for Netanyahu’s dealing with of the conflict in Gaza in retaliation for Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, terror assault in Israel.
The controversy took on new significance final month when the Worldwide Legal Court docket’s (ICC) chief prosecutor, Karim Khan, introduced he would search arrest warrants towards high Israeli and Hamas officers, Netanyahu included.
“As an alternative of coming right here, we want Netanyahu to cease bombing indiscriminately in Gaza and for him to respect the president’s purple line of not having continued navy operations in Rafah,” Rep. Greg Casar, D-Texas, informed Fox Information Digital earlier this month. “I don’t assume it’s an excellent time for him to be coming.”
Requested if he deliberate to attend the speech, Casar stated, “I don’t plan to attend, and I’ll plan to take part in no matter advocacy is being carried out to push for Netanyahu and Hamas to agree to a cease-fire.”
Fox Information Digital has reached out to Ocasio-Cortez for remark.
Earlier this month, she informed reporters that Netanyahu’s go to wouldn’t be “productive.”
“Not solely is there little or no objective to it, however I feel it’s patently unproductive. I feel it’s counterproductive proper now for him to handle Congress, significantly as we proceed to attempt to nail down particulars on the cease-fire,” Ocasio-Cortez stated. “I actually don’t approve of it, doubtlessly might not attend.”
Netanyahu’s go to to the Capitol additionally comes because the relationship between President Joe Biden and the chief of the Jewish state has frayed in current months.
Biden has privately and publicly criticized Netanyahu’s dealing with of the conflict, and criticized the Israeli authorities for not letting extra humanitarian support into Gaza.
Fox Information Digital’s Elizabeth Elkind contributed to this report.
