Sources: CBN, Thrive News, Israel365News, allisraelnews, MY CHRISTIAN DAILY
SEE Op-ed: Were Americans listening to Netanyahu’s message?
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delivered an unprecedented fourth speech to the United States Congress on Wednesday at a time he called “a crossroads in history”
“Our world is in upheaval. In the Middle East, Iran’s axis of terror confronts America, Israel, and our Arab friends. This is not a clash of civilisations. It’s a clash between barbarism and civilisation. It’s a clash between those who glorify death and those who sanctify life,” he said.
He emphasised the bond between the United States and Israel is indispensable for the times.
- Advertisement -
He stated: “For the forces of civilisation to triumph, America and Israel must stand together. Because when we stand together, something very simple happens: We win. They lose.”
Netanyahu’s speech was interrupted by a record 57 standing ovations by Republican and Democratic lawmakers. But deep divisions in the Congress over Netanyahu’s leadership during the war in Gaza were on full display with about half the Democratic members, including Vice President Kamala Harris, boycotting the speech. Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib (D-Michigan), a Palestinian-American, held up a “war criminal” sign during the address.
The rift in American society was also evident outside the Capitiol where several thousand pro-Hamas and anti-Israel protesters chanted: “From the River to the Sea,” and called for an Intifada, or violent revolution.
Some protesters carried ISIS flags while others hoisted Palestinian flags and burned American ones and vandalised monuments with pro-Hamas graffiti.
Netanyahu addressed the demonstrators from the podium in Congress: “When the tyrants of Tehran, who hang gays from cranes and murder women for not covering their hair, are praising, promoting, and funding you, you have officially become Iran’s useful idiots.”
He said defeating Israel’s enemies requires both courage and clarity, and he accused the protesters of standing for a cause they don’t understand.
“Many anti-Israel protesters choose to stand with evil. They stand with Hamas. They stand with rapists and murderers… these protesters stand with them, they should be ashamed of themselves,” he said.
While the protesters deny Israel’s connection to the land they call “Palestine,” Netanyahu said the Jews’ right to the land comes from the Bible.
“They call Israel a colonialist state. Don’t they know that the Land of Israel is where Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob prayed, where Isaiah and Jeremiah preached, and where David and Solomon ruled?” the prime minister asked. “For nearly 4 000 years, the Land of Israel has been the homeland of the Jewish people. It’s always been our home; it will always be our home.”
The prime minister went on to address many of the false accusations leveled against Israel, including the claims that they’re committing genocide in Gaza, describing the great lengths Israel goes to to prevent civilian casualties.
“For Israel, every civilian death is a tragedy. For Hamas, it’s a strategy. They want Palestinians to die so Israel will be smeared in international media and end war before it’s begun,” he explained, pointing to the well-documented Hamas strategy of using civilians as human shields.
The Israeli prime minister’s US visit was his first overseas trip since October 7, a day, he explained, when Hamas terrorists slaughtered, raped, and murdered nearly 1 200 Israelis, including 39 Americans, and kidnapped nearly 250 people.
He introduced Noa Argamani in the gallery, recently rescued by Israel’s Special Forces from Hamas captivity.
“On the morning of October 7th, the entire world saw Noa’s look of desperation as she was violently abducted to Gaza on the back of a motorcycle,” Netanyahu recalled.
He delivered his speech even as the IDF was recovering the bodies of five hostages murdered by Hamas.
Netanyahu also called for the establishment of a Middle Eastern defence alliance to confront the threat posed to the region by Iran.
“The day after we defeat Hamas, a new Gaza can emerge. My vision for that day is of a demilitarized and deradicalized Gaza,” he said. “Israel does not seek to resettle Gaza. But for the foreseeable future, we must retain overriding security control there to prevent the resurgence of terror, to ensure that Gaza never again poses a threat to Israel,” he added.
He suggested that the regional defence alliance he proposed be called the “Abraham Alliance,” and should include countries that “have made peace with Israel and those that will make peace with Israel.”
The region had already seen “a glimpse” of that alliance on April 13, he said, when Iran launched more than 300 missiles and drones at Israel. A coalition of countries comprising the United States, Israel, Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Egypt successfully neutralised the threat.
The Israeli prime minister thanked US President Joe Biden “for bringing that alliance together”.
He said the proposed “Abraham Alliance” would essentially be “an extension of the groundbreaking Abraham Accords” which included normalisation agreements signed in the fall of 2020 between Israel, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Morocco and Sudan.
Netanyahu ended with a clarion call that a nuclear Iran threatens both the Jewish state and the United States.
He declared: “When Israel acts to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons – nuclear weapons that could destroy Israel and threaten every American city, every city that you come from – we’re not only protecting ourselves, we’re protecting you. My friends, If you remember one thing, one thing from this speech, remember this: our enemies are your enemies, our fight is your fight, and our victory will be your victory.”
Netenyahu’s remaining US schedule includes meetings with President Biden and Vice President Harris today and a Friday meeting at Mar-a-Lago with Former President Trump.
The night before he addressed Congress, the Israeli prime minister met with key figures of the US Evangelical community, including John Hagee, Tony Perkins, and Paula White. Netanyahu expressed his deep appreciation for the steadfast support of the Evangelical leaders, especially during these tumultuous times for Israel.
After the weekend Netanyaju will return to the 7-front war Israel is fighting for its survival.
Please help us to keep on publishing news that brings Hope in Jesus:
![](https://gatewaynews.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/SA-BELONGS-TO-JESUS-small.jpg")
Click to join movement
>> Donate >> Become a Super Subscriber
VISIT OUR YOUTUBE CHANNEL: https://www.youtube.com/gatewaynews100
COMMENTING GUIDELINES
You are welcome to engage with our articles by making comments [in the Comments area below] that add value to a topic or to engage in thoughtful, constructive discussion with fellow readers. Comments that contain vulgar language will be removed. Hostile, demeaning, disrespectful, propagandistic and off-topic comments may also be moved. This is a Christian website and if you wish to vent against Christian beliefs you have probably come to the wrong place and your comments may be removed. Ongoing debates and repetitiveness will not be tolerated. You will also disqualify yourself from commenting if you engage in trolling.