UPDATE - Israeli opposition leaders slam Netanyahu’s speech to US Congress

REVISES HEADLINE, DECK, LEDE, ADDS MORE REACTIONS

By Zein Khalil

JERUSALEM (AA) - Israeli opposition leaders sharply criticized Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s speech on Wednesday to the US Congress.

Yair Lapid, the leader of the There Is a Future Party, called the address “disgraceful.”

“Disgrace! An hour of talking without uttering the single sentence: 'There will be a kidnapping deal,'” Lapid wrote on X, accusing Netanyahu of failing to address a prisoner exchange deal with the Palestinian resistance group Hamas.

Similarly, Deputy Knesset Speaker Evgeny Sova from the opposition Yisrael Beiteinu Party took to X to criticize Netanyahu's leadership.

“He knows how to speak English. To manage the country in the most serious crisis in its history – no,” Sova wrote.

“If he had acted against the enemy in time, the speech could have been a victory speech rather than a request for assistance,” he added.

Gilad Kariv, a Knesset member from the Labor Party, echoed these sentiments, saying on X that “Netanyahu's rhetorical ability and the applause failed to hide the Prime Minister's incompetence to bring the State of Israel out of the gravest crisis in its history.”

“Netanyahu did not say a single substantial thing about the hostage deal, did not commit to a political process, and, as usual, did not take any responsibility for the October 7 failure,” he added.

Naama Lazimi, also from Lapid’s party, said: “No words of eloquence, eloquence, and charisma, will cover the neglect and failure to take responsibility.”

“There is no speech that can be more powerful than saving a life and a deal for the return of the abductees. Bring them back now, and there will be applause here too!” she said, addressing Netanyahu.

- Alliance hails speech

In contrast, Justice Minister Yariv Levin from Netanyahu's Likud Party praised the speech on X, calling it “historic” and saying that it reminded the world of Israel's righteous cause.

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich of the Religious Zionism party expressed pride in Netanyahu’s representation of Israel, describing it as reflecting a deep partnership between Israel and the US.

During his speech, Netanyahu briefly mentioned the captives, saying he had met with their families and assured them that he would not rest until their loved ones returned home.

Earlier, Netanyahu spoke before a joint session of the US Congress and vowed to continue with the brutal war in Gaza until “total victory.”

He arrived in the US on Monday and is scheduled to meet with President Joe Biden on Thursday, followed by a meeting with Vice President Kamala Harris.

On Friday, Netanyahu is set to meet with former President Donald Trump in Florida before returning to Israel on Saturday evening.

Israel, flouting a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate cease-fire, has faced international condemnation amid its continued brutal offensive against Gaza since an Oct. 7, 2023 attack by Hamas.

At least 39,100 Palestinians have since been killed, mostly women and children, and over 90,000 injured, according to local health authorities.

Over nine months into the Israeli onslaught, vast tracts of Gaza lie in ruins amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water and medicine.

Israel is accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice, which ordered it to immediately halt its military operation in the southern city of Rafah, where more than 1 million Palestinians had sought refuge from the war before it was invaded on May 6.

*Writing by Mohammad Sio