- Written by Matt Murphy
- BBC News, Washington
Video: Schumer calls Netanyahu a 'major obstacle' to peace
U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer has called on Israel to hold an election to replace Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, as cracks appear in what was once a stable and friendly alliance.
Schumer, a senior Jewish official in the U.S. government, said Thursday that Netanyahu had lost his way.
Washington leaders avoid directly criticizing Netanyahu's approach to Gaza conflict
The United States' criticism of Mr. Netanyahu's government is rapidly increasing.
Schumer, who has supported Israel throughout his 25 years in the Senate, warned that casualties in the Gaza Strip risked turning Israel into a “pariah.”
Schumer, a longtime supporter of Israel, harshly criticized Israeli leaders in a speech on the Senate floor Thursday, saying they had come to “put their own political survival ahead of Israel's best interests.” .
Schumer said Israel needs to “correct course” and take steps to better protect civilians in the Gaza Strip.
Israeli leaders quickly condemned the senator, and Netanyahu's Likud party said Israel was not a “banana republic” and that his policies were “supported by the vast majority.”
“Senator Schumer is expected to respect and not undermine the elected government of Israel,” the party said.
Israel's ambassador to Washington, Michael Herzog, also attacked the remarks, writing to X that commenting on the “domestic political situation of democratic allies” is “useless” and “counterproductive.”
The statement from one of America's most powerful political leaders came on the heels of sharp criticism from the White House.
Leaders of both parties in the U.S. government, including President Joe Biden, said the attack began on Oct. 7, when Hamas militants attacked southern Israel, killing about 1,200 people and taking more than 250 hostages. Mr. Netanyahu has largely refrained from criticizing how he has handled the conflict.
The United States remains Israel's closest ally and largest military aid provider, but there are growing concerns within the Biden administration and among some members of his own party about Israel's handling of the war.
Biden, who is running for the White House again, is also under political pressure in this presidential election year.
A coalition of Arab American voters organized successful protests during the Democratic primary, a sign of the Democratic base's restlessness over the situation in Gaza.
The rift between the two governments has become public in recent weeks, with Biden warning Israel against escalating its invasion of the city of Rafah, calling it a “red line that should not be crossed.”
Biden also called Israel's response in the region “overreach” in his State of the Union address last week.
After his speech, he was caught on a hot mic telling a concerned senator that he and the Israeli leader would soon have a “coming to Jesus moment.”
“That's a good thing,” Biden responded after listening to the live audio.
And President Biden has stepped up his calls for Israel to accept more humanitarian aid to the enclave, saying there are “no excuses.”
Nevertheless, the White House quickly distanced itself from Schumer's comments Thursday.
Press Secretary John Kirby said the Senate majority leader is entitled to his opinion, but administration officials are focused on cooperating with Israel's defense.
The Hamas-run Health Ministry announced last month that more than 30,000 Palestinians, mostly children and women, had been killed in Gaza since October 7.
The real death toll could be even higher, as this number does not include those who have not reached hospitals, some of whom are still buried under the rubble of buildings hit by Israeli airstrikes. Thousands of people are dead.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday that the 30,000 figure was unacceptable. He said Israeli forces had killed 13,000 Hamas fighters in the Gaza Strip, and estimated the ratio of civilian deaths to combatant deaths was 1:1.5.
“As a democracy, Israel has the right to choose its own leaders, and we should leave them to their own devices,” Schumer said Thursday.
“But the important thing is that Israelis have a choice. There needs to be a new discussion about Israel's future.”
“In my opinion, the best way to achieve that is by holding elections,” he added. Israel next plans to hold general elections by October 2026.
Schumer said that for peace talks to proceed, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, based in the occupied West Bank, must also resign. The 88-year-old Palestinian leader has rarely been seen during the conflict, and his government has not held an election since 2006.
Abbas, who is under pressure from the United States to reform the Palestinian Authority, appointed a former adviser as prime minister on Wednesday.
Schumer's comments prompted outgoing Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell to slam the 40-minute speech as “grotesque” and “unprecedented.”
“It is hypocritical for Americans hyperventilating about foreign interference in our democracy to call for the removal of Israel's democratically elected leaders,” he said.
Opinion polls show that a majority of Israelis support the war, but one poll released in January found that only 15% of voters want Netanyahu to remain in office after the civil war ends. Ta.
Meanwhile, the United States unveiled its first sanctions against three more settlers and two Israeli settlement outposts it accused of undermining stability in the occupied West Bank.
According to UN statistics, there were nearly 500 attacks by Israeli settlers against Palestinians between October 7 and January 31.
A majority of the international community considers the settlements and outposts to be illegal under international law, but Israel and the United States contest this interpretation.
