Biden & Netanyahu meet with hostage families a day after scorching Congress speech – as president pushes for Gaza truce
PRESIDENT Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with the families of American hostages in Gaza one day after a scorching speech before Congress.
The families expressed their frustration about a lack of outreach from Netanyahu's office, comparing it to the communication received from Biden administration officials.
Some family members hoped Biden would use the meeting to pressure Netanyahu, especially since the president no longer has the burden of a reelection campaign after dropping out of the race.
However, others were more optimistic about the meeting, believing it could lead to a deal being reached soon.
"We feel more optimistic than we have since the first round of releases in late November, early December," Jonathan Dekel-Chen told CNN.
"We got absolute commitment from President Biden and Prime Minister Netanyahu that they understand the urgency of this moment now.
"And to waste no time. And to complete this deal as it currently stands with as little change as humanly possible."
Vice President Kamala Harris said she had a "frank and constructive" meeting with Netanyahu, saying that she supports Israel's right to defend itself but added, "how it does so matters"
Harris had concerns over the "devastating" crisis in Gaza with images of civilians killed, saying, "We cannot look away in the face of these tragedies."
Like President Biden, she called for a ceasefire to end the fighting and to boost humanitarian aid to Gaza while also calling for the hostages' release.
"I have met with the families of these American hostages multiple times now and I have told them each time that they are not alone and I stand with them. And President Biden and I are working every day to bring them home," said Harris on Thursday evening.
"I also expressed with the Prime Minister my serious concern about the scale of human suffering in Gaza, including the death of far too many innocent civilians. And I made clear my serious concern about the dire humanitarian situation there."
The eight US citizens who are still being held by Hamas are Hersch Goldberg-Polin, 23, from California who moved to Israel to be with his family.
Goldberg-Polin was kidnapped from the Nova Music Festival.
Sagui Dekel Chen, 35, from New Jersey, and Keith Siegel, 64, from North Carolina, were taken from their homes near the Gaza border.
Eden Alexander, 19, from Tenafly, New Jersey, and Omer Neutra from Long Island, New York are members of the Israel Defense Forces who were taken from their military bases.
Hamas released chilling footage of Goldberg-Polin and Siegel, leaving their families under the impression that they were still alive.
Our enemies are your enemies, and our fight is your fight.
Benjamin Netanayhu
Three other citizens Judy Weinstein and her husband, Gad Haggai, and 19-year-old Italy Chen, are believed to have been murdered by Hamas.
Neutra's parents, Ronen and Orna, spoke at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, urging leaders to strike a deal to release the hostages.
"This was not merely an attack on Israel; this was and remains an attack on Americans," Ronen Neutra said.
'GET TO IT'
President Biden welcomed the Israeli PM to the White House before saying, "We have a lot to talk about. I think we should get to it."
In his brief remarks to reporters, Netanyahu praised Biden, calling him a proud Irish-American Zionist, and thanked him for his 50 years of support of the state of Israel.
The Israeli leader remains under pressure at home over his handling of the war with Hamas, which has claimed the lives of nearly 40,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza's Hamas-run health ministry.
The war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza has raged since the Palestinian militant group slaughtered more than 1,000 Israelis on October 7.
Biden is expected to be forceful in his closed-door discussion with Netanyahu and urge him to accept a ceasefire agreement with Hamas, according to CNN.
White House National Security spokesman John Kirby told reporters Biden was using the meeting to reiterate his calls for a quick resolution between Israel and Hamas.
Netanyahu warned that "America is next" if the US doesn't support Israel against the "axis of terror" led by Iran in the Middle East in his fiery speech before Congress.
"The gap is closable. But it's going to require, as it always does, some leadership, some compromise," Kirby said.
During his address, Netanyahu pushed back against the harsh international criticism his country has endured since the start of the war with Hamas.
The Israeli PM pledged to achieve "total victory" over Hamas and denounced American opponents of the war in Gaza as "Iran's useful idiots."
"America and Israel must stand together," Netanyahu fiercely argued.
"When we stand together, something really simple happens. We win, they lose.
"Our enemies are your enemies, and our fight is your fight. Our victory will be your victory."
Dozens of Congress members chose to boycott Netanyahu's visit to the US Capitol, including presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris
Harris skipped the Israeli leader's speech to Congress and instead traveled to Texas for a campaign stop at a sorority.
Who are the American hostages in Gaza?
Meet the eight Americans who are still being held hostage by Hamas, per the AJC .
- Edan Alexander, 19: The New Jersey native left his home after graduating high school to participate in Garin Tzabar, a program for young Jewish adults who want to explore serving as lone soldiers in Israel’s Defense Forces
- Itay Chen, 19: Chen was born in New York, but was raised in Israel and served in the IDF. His family learned he died on October 7, but his body is still being held captive by Hamas
- Sagui Dekel-Chen, 35: The grandson of Holocaust survivors, Dekel-Chen was working in his machine shop 200 yards from his home when Hamas terrorists entered Kibbutz Nir Oz
- Hersh Goldberg-Polin, 23: Polin was last seen at a field shelter with others who tried to escape the Supernova desert festival
- Gadi Haggai, 73: Haggai was shot by terrorists on a motorcycle, but his body is still being held captive by Hamas
- Judith Weinstein Haggai, 70: On the morning of October 7, Judith called the ambulance to help her husband, who was shot by Hamas. The ambulance never arrived, and terrorists came back to kill her. Judith's body is still being held captive by Hamas
- Omer Neutra, 22: The New York native took a gap year before attending Binghamton University to serve in the IDF's tank brigade. Hamas militants ambushed his tank with rocket-propelled grenades on October 7.
- Keith Siegel, 64: The North Carolina man moved to Tel Aviv 40 years ago; on October 7, he and his wife were taken hostage and driven to Gaza with a neighbor and her two children. His wife was released on November 26, but Keith remains, his ribs broken from being captured.
GOP BLASTS HARRIS FOR SKIPPING PM'S SPEECH
Republican lawmakers were quick to call out Harris for missing Netanyahu's speech.
"VPOTUS Harris's snub of Netanyahu is petty and disrespectful," Texas Senator John Cornyn wrote on X.
"She doesn't have many jobs as the vice president. The vice president could be here today if she wanted to," Alabama Senator Katie Britt said.
"She has chosen not to fulfill her duty."
Netanyahu and Harris are expected to meet at 4:30 pm on Thursday.
During a March speech, Harris called for an immediate ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war.
The vice president also demanded that the Israeli government do more to supply aid to starving Gaza civilians.
"We have seen reports of families eating leaves and animal feed, children dying from malnutrition and dehydration. Too many innocent Palestinians have been killed," she added.
During his remarks to Congress, Netanyahu denied the claims from the International Criminal Court that Israeli leadership was withholding aid from reaching Gaza.
"The prosecutor of the International Criminal Court has shamefully accused Israel of deliberately starving the people of Gaza. This is utter complete nonsense," the Israeli PM said.
"If there are Palestinians in Gaza who aren't getting enough food, it's not because Israel is blocking it. It's because Hamas is stealing it."
We feel more optimistic than we have since the first round of releases in late November, early December.
Jonathan Dekel-Chen
'DESPICABLE ACTS'
Netanyahu's visit to Washington DC sparked mass protests outside Capitol Hill, where pro-Palestine demonstrators clashed with police, burning Israeli and American flags.
Cops armed with riot gear, batons, and pepper spray protected the ring of metal barriers around Capitol Hill as protestors vowed a "day of rage."
Video showed a crowd of protestors setting an American flag ablaze outside Washington DC's Union Station.
The demonstrators were also seen replacing a US flag on a pole with a Palestinian one.
Vice President Harris condemned the burning of the American flag as a "despicable act."
"Yesterday, at Union Station in Washington D.C. we saw despicable acts by unpatriotic protestors and dangerous hate-fueled rhetoric," the presidential candidate, 49, said on Thursday.
"I condemn any individuals associating with the brutal terrorist organization Hamas, which has vowed to annihilate the State of Israel and kill Jews.
"Pro-Hamas graffiti and rhetoric is abhorrent and we must not tolerate it in our nation.
"I condemn the burning of the American flag. That flag is a symbol of our highest ideals as a nation and represents the promise of America.
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"It should never be desecrated in that way. I support the right to peacefully protest, but let's be clear: Antisemitism, hate and violence of any kind have no place in our nation."
At least 17 people were arrested on Wednesday, according to US Park Police and DC Metro cops.