JERUSALEM, Israel – With his address to Congress behind him, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu now turns his attention to meetings with President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, and former President Donald Trump. By most accounts, it was a powerful speech, extolling the Israeli-U.S. relationship and reminding Americans of the biblical covenant between Israel and the God of the Bible.
At the beginning of his address, Netanyahu declared what he believes is at stake in today's world.
“We meet today at a crossroads of history," he said. "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 civilizations. It's a clash between barbarism and civilization. It's a clash between those who glorify death and those who sanctify life.”
He emphasized the bond between the United States and Israel is indispensable for the times.
He stated, “For the forces of civilization to triumph, America and Israel must stand together. Because when we stand together, something very simple happens: We win. They lose.”
The prime minister's visit to the U.S. marked his first overseas trip since October 7th, 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.
Outside the Capitol, 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 flags of the genocidal group ISIS. Others hoisted Palestinian flags and burned American ones.
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.”
Lawmakers interrupted Netanyahu's speech 57 times with standing ovations.
Notably absent from Netanyahu's address was Vice President Kamala Harris, who would have presided over the meeting as president of the Senate. Dozens of Democrats boycotted the speech, while Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib (D-Michigan), a Palestinian-American, held up a "war criminal" sign during the address.
Former Deputy National Security Advisor Victoria Coates told CBN's Faith Nation Wednesday, “I really thought that was shameful. I think it suggests the kind of tactics that we’ve seen from the heavily anti-Semitic, anti-Israel boycott, divestiture, and sanction group, the so-called BDS people, who were very prominent amongst the protestors today.”
While the protesters deny Israel's connection to the land they call "Palestine," Netanyahu claimed 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 four thousand 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.”
During CBN News' live coverage of the address, Jeff Ballabon an Orthodox Jew working with the American Center for Law and Justice explained it's this connection to the Bible that binds Jews and Christians.
“We know that so many tens of millions of Christians stand with us and behind us, and I have to tell you, it’s really – it’s a miracle," Ballabon asserted. "It’s a miracle; for two thousand years, we really didn’t feel this, and now we do, and that has to continue, and they’re fighting against us and there’s a war against that within Christianity and within America. And Benjamin Netanyahu came here to shine a light and to hoist, not the flag, but honestly, to hoist the Bible a little bit. And (to) talk about Jewish history and Christian history are what’s being denied now.”
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.”
On the prime minister's remaining U.S. schedule are meetings with President Biden and Vice President Harris on Thursday, and a Friday meeting at Mar-a-Lago with Former President Trump. After the weekend, he'll return to the 7-front war Israel is fighting for its survival.
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