Biden, Harris to meet Israel’s Netanyahu amid Gaza war protests

Israeli prime minister, who will also meet ex-President Trump on US visit, faces condemnation over devastating conflict.

Washington, DC – US President Joe Biden is set to meet Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a day after thousands of people protested against the Israeli leader’s visit to the United States capital amid the Gaza war.

US Vice President Kamala Harris, the likely Democratic presidential nominee in November’s election, is also expected to hold talks with Netanyahu on Thursday.

The meetings come after the Israeli prime minister on Wednesday delivered a fiery defence of Israel’s war on Gaza, which has killed more than 39,000 Palestinians and created a humanitarian catastrophe, in an address to a joint session of the US Congress.

Several US lawmakers boycotted the speech and thousands of protesters gathered at the US Capitol to call on Washington to cut off military assistance to its “ironclad” Middle East ally.

The Biden administration has continued to provide unwavering support to Israel amid the conflict in Gaza, authorising billions of dollars in military aid and providing Israel with key diplomatic backing.

In Thursday’s meeting at the White House, which is set to begin at 1pm local time (17:00 GMT), the US president is expected to push Netanyahu to finalise a three-phase ceasefire deal with Hamas that Biden first presented in May.

The pair will then meet families of Americans held captive in Gaza before Netanyahu meets Harris, who has been catapulted into the role of likely Democratic presidential candidate after Biden withdrew from the race on Sunday.

While Harris has been relatively more outspoken than other members of the administration about the humanitarian toll in Gaza, a senior administration official told reporters there is “no daylight between the president and vice president” on Israel, according to The Associated Press.

‘Much tougher’

Reporting from Washington, DC, Al Jazeera’s Alan Fisher said the White House has indicated that Biden – now no longer seeking re-election – is expected to take a tougher stance with Netanyahu than he has in previous exchanges throughout the war.

“Although there were warm words during Netanyahu’s speech to the joint session of Congress on Wednesday, the reality is that Joe Biden and him have been at odds about the way the war has been conducted for some time,” Fisher said ahead of the meeting.

“What we are hearing from the White House is that Joe Biden will be much tougher on Benjamin Netanyahu this time,” he explained.

“And you’ve got to see that through the prism of Joe Biden thinking about his legacy. He would like to see a ceasefire deal – something that he has pushed for, something that his team negotiated.”

Still, former President and 2024 Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump – a staunch supporter of Israel during his term in the White House – has loomed large over Netanyahu’s visit.

The Israeli prime minister took time to praise many of Trump’s actions while in office during his speech to Congress.

Netanyahu pointed to the Trump-mediated Abraham Accords, which saw Israel establish ties with several Arab countries, as well as Trump’s decision to move the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem and recognise Israel’s claim to the Syrian-occupied Golan Heights.

Netanyahu will meet Trump at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida on Friday.

The Israeli leader is expected to attempt to mend ties with the former president, who had previously condemned Netanyahu for accepting Biden’s victory in the 2020 presidential election.

Speaking to Fox News on Thursday, Trump said it was “very nice” that Netanyahu referred to him during his speech.

Still, he said Israel needs to move faster to end the war in Gaza, if only to repair its “public relations”.

“Israel has to handle their public relations. Their public relations are not good. The world is not taking lightly to it,” said Trump, adding that Hamas’s attacks on southern Israel on October 7 would not have happened if he were president.