U.S. congressional leaders have invited Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to address a joint session of the Senate and House of Representatives on July 24. Normally, we Israelis would see this invitation as a recognition of our shared values and a welcome from our closest friend and ally, to whom we have a deep moral debt.
But Congress made a terrible error. Mr. Netanyahu’s presence in Washington does not represent the State of Israel or its people, and will serve as a reward for his scandalous and destructive behavior against our country.
We come from different sectors of Israeli society: science, technology, politics, defense, law and culture. We are therefore well-positioned to assess the overall impact of Netanyahu’s government and, like many, we believe that he is causing Israel to decline at an alarming rate and that ultimately, we may lose the country we love.
Netanyahu has so far failed to produce a plan to end the war in Gaza or secure the release of many of the hostages. At the very least, his request to speak to parliament should have been conditional on him resolving those two issues, as well as calling for new elections in Israel.
Inviting Netanyahu would reciprocate his disdain for U.S. efforts to develop a peace plan, allow more aid to Gaza’s dispossessed, and protect civilians. He has repeatedly rejected President Biden’s plans to remove Hamas from power in Gaza through the establishment of a peacekeeping force. Such a move would very likely result in a much broader regional alliance, including an initiative to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, which would be in Israel’s interest as well as the interests of both political parties in the United States. Netanyahu is the main obstacle to these outcomes.
The man who will address parliament next month has not taken responsibility for the failures that allowed Hamas to attack, initially blaming security chiefs (then quickly retracting the blame) and has yet to announce the creation of an urgently needed state commission of inquiry headed by a Supreme Court judge to look into the debacle.
Despite the fierce fighting in Gaza and daily casualties on both sides after Hamas’ horrific attack on October 7, Prime Minister Netanyahu continues to push for an authoritarian makeover of Israel as if nothing has changed. Israeli police under the command of far-right Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir have violently cracked down on demonstrators. The appointments of court judges and the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court remain pending. Central scientific and cultural institutions continue to withstand attempts at political control by the government. Huge amounts of money are recklessly channeled to ultra-Orthodox Jews, who generally do not share the economic and security burdens of Israeli citizens, and who are especially exempt from military service. Tuesday’s Supreme Court ruling overturning the exemptions is a step forward, but the actual impact is unclear, given that Prime Minister Netanyahu has proposed to enshrine the exemptions in law.
In particular, many Israelis believe that Prime Minister Netanyahu sabotaged a proposed deal with Hamas that would have led to the hostages’ release in order to keep the war going and avoid the inevitable political responsibility he would face when it ends.
Ben Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, whom Netanyahu needs to stay in power, are strongly opposed to ending the war in Gaza, even for a temporary ceasefire, and want to recapture the Strip and build new settlements there.
Over the past few months, many of us have taken part in nationwide demonstrations demanding the immediate release of the hostages, an end to the war and immediate elections. Opinion polls of Israelis show that the vast majority want immediate elections, or elections as soon as the war ends.
Most Israelis have lost confidence in Prime Minister Netanyahu’s government, which clings to power thanks to a shaky parliamentary majority that ignores the plight of tens of thousands of Israelis who fled Hamas attacks in the south and Lebanon’s Hezbollah attacks in the north, and the families of the hostages who are now a powerful force in Israel.
In this respect, Netanyahu’s parliamentary speech suits his political needs: it is sure to be carefully choreographed to shore up his shaky power base and allow him to boast to voters of so-called American support for his failed policies.
Israel’s supporters have been emboldened by Trump’s appearance in Congress to insist on continuing the war, potentially making an agreement to secure the release of the hostages, including several Americans, even more distant.
Giving Prime Minister Netanyahu a platform in Washington would amount to largely ignoring the public anger and pain expressed in demonstrations across the country. American lawmakers should not allow this to happen. They should urge Prime Minister Netanyahu to stay home.
David Harel is president of the Israel Academy of Science and Humanities. Tamir Pardo is former director of Mossad, Israel’s foreign intelligence agency. Talia Sasson is former head of the Special Missions Department of the Israel Public Prosecutor’s Office. Ehud Barak is a former Prime Minister of Israel. Aaron Ciechanover was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2004. David Grossman is a writer of fiction, non-fiction, and children’s books.
The Times is committed to publishing Diverse characters To the Editor: Tell us what you think about this article and others like it. Tips. And here is our email: letters@nytimes.com.
Follow The New York Times Opinion section Facebook, Instagram, Tick tock, WhatsApp, X and thread.
