Israel’s president promotes unity with U.S. against Iran as Netanyahu’s government draws criticism

By Carolina Stanton On Jul 19, 2023

Israeli President Isaac Herzog drew cheers from a joint meeting of Congress Wednesday by stressing the United States and Israel must remain united on the common goal of preventing Iran from developing a nuclear weapon — regardless of current tensions between the Biden administration and the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

The relationship has been unsettled by U.S. criticism of the right-wing Israeli government’s expanding settlement activity on West Bank lands claimed by Palestinians, and of Mr. Netanyahu’s planned overhaul of Israel’s judicial system that opponents say will destroy the country’s fragile checks and balances system and move the country toward authoritarian rule.

Traditional bipartisan U.S. support for Israel has been frayed since Mr. Netanyahu took office a year ago, but Mr. Herzon said the two countries had a common cause in confronting Tehran.

“Israel and the United States must act forcefully together to prevent Iran’s fundamental threat to international security,” said Mr. Herzog, whose trip to Washington coincided with growing domestic clashes back home over Mr. Netanyahu’s agenda.

Mr. Herzog, whose position is largely ceremonial and nonpartisan, has sought this week to tamp down U.S. unease over his country, underscoring Wednesday that Israel’s democracy remains “strong and resilient,” and that the heated protests in his country are a sign of democracy in action.

“I am well aware of the imperfections of Israeli democracy and I’m conscious of the questions posed by our greatest of friends,” he said in a nearly hour-long address at the Capitol, a day after pushing a similar message to Mr. Biden at the White House.

“It’s no secret that over the past few months, the Israeli people have engaged in a heated and painful debate,” Mr. Herzog said. “… In practice, the tense debate going on back home, even as we speak, is the clearest tribute to the fortitude of Israel’s democracy.”

His assertions came less than 24 hours after tens of thousands of protesters once again blocked highways and massed in central Tel Aviv against the judicial overhaul plan, the first aspect of which seeks to limit the Israeli Supreme Court’s oversight powers and could become law as soon as next week.

The unrest has been made worse by spiking Israeli-Palestinian violence tied to the West Bank settlements push. In late June, Israel carried out a rare airstrike on a car in the West Bank that officials said was carrying Palestinian gunmen accused of killing four Israelis. The strike came after Israeli settlers, outraged over the shootings, had stormed a Palestinian town, setting fire to dozens of cars and homes.

Mr. Herzog’s U.S. visit has drawn attention to Mr. Biden’s failure to issue the traditional White House invitation to Mr. Netanyahu since his conservative government took power last year. The White House this week said the two men had talked by phone and Mr. Netanyahu was invited to the U.S. at an unspecified time and place for a presidential meeting before the end of the year.

Some Democrats have sought to amplify the tone of U.S.-Israel tension, lending partisan overtones to Wednesday’s address.

Rep. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota led the so-called “Squad” of far-left Democratic House members in boycotting Mr. Herzog’s speech, saying via Twitter that there was “no way in hell” she would attend. Rep. Rashida Tlaib of Michigan, the only Palestinian-American in Congress, offered a similar message, noting that, “this year alone, the far-right Israeli government has approved the construction of over 13,000 illegal settlement units on Palestinian land.”

Mr. Herzog told lawmakers that his own “deep yearning … is for Israel to one day make peace with our Palestinian neighbors,” but that “true peace cannot be anchored in violence.”

He separately praised Washington’s promotion of the Abraham Accords, a Trump-era initiative that saw several Arab nations formally recognize Israel for the first time and open diplomatic relations with Jerusalem. Mr. Herzog expressed hope the accords will grow to include Saudi Arabia, the region’s most powerful Arab monarchy, saying “we pray for this moment.”

He also praised Mr. Biden for confronting attacks against Jewish people. “I commend [him] for laying out the United States first-ever national strategy to combat antisemitism,” he said.

Mr. Herzog’s comments on Iran, meanwhile, coincide with uncertainty over Mr. Biden’s Iran policy. The Islamic republic has rejected the administration’s attempt to restore the Obama-era nuclear deal that gave Tehran sanctions relief in exchange for limits to nuclear enrichment, an agreement multiple Israeli governments have opposed.

“Perhaps the greatest challenge Israel and the United States face at this time together is the Iranian nuclear program,” Mr. Herzog said. “Let there be no doubt Iran does not strive to attain nuclear energy for peaceful purposes, Iran is building nuclear capabilities that pose a threat to the stability of the Middle East and beyond.”

Iran, “together with its proxies throughout the Middle East, is aiming and working towards destroying the State of Israel, killing the Jews and challenging the entire world,” he said. “The entire free world allowing Iran to become a nuclear threshold state, whether by omission or by diplomatic commission, is unacceptable.”