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Netanyahu delegation discouraged after meeting with VP Harris

The Israeli government is concerned that Harris placed undue pressure on Israel and risks emboldening Hamas with her public comments

WASHINGTON, DC - JULY 25: U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu shake hands before the start of a meeting in the Vice President's ceremonial office in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on July 25, 2024 in Washington, DC. Netanyahu’s visit occurs as the Israel-Hamas war reaches nearly ten months. In addition to meeting with U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris, Netanyahu also met with U.S. President Joe BIden and families of American Hostages held by Hamas. (Photo by Kenny Holston-Pool/Getty Images)

Members of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s delegation to Washington were disappointed after their meeting with Vice President Kamala Harris, according to a senior Israeli diplomatic source, expressing concern that the likely Democratic presidential nominee wants to create more daylight between the U.S. and Israel.

Netanyahu and Harris’ meeting was closely watched by analysts as a likely indication of how the newly minted presidential candidate will position herself on Israel and the war in Gaza. The members of Netanyahu’s delegation to Washington didn’t have an encouraging first impression with the vice president, according to multiple Israeli sources.

Netanyahu believes that a united front between Israel and the U.S. strengthens the Jewish state’s position in the indirect negotiations with Hamas to release the 120 hostages it is holding in Gaza. According to a source in his delegation, Netanyahu views Hamas as having walked away from negotiations in March when it saw greater pressure on Israel from Washington.

Netanyahu’s meeting with President Joe Biden focused in large part on hostage negotiations, was positive and showed “a positive trend” towards an agreement, a senior Israeli diplomatic source said. 

According to the senior source, Netanyahu “told [Biden] that the more our enemies see that there is a united stance between Israel and the U.S., the greater the chances of a deal to release the hostages, and the lower the chance of a regional war.”

“The greater the gap” between the Israeli and American public positions, the senior source continued, “the farther away a deal gets and the greater chance of a military conflagration.” 

The source specifically described Harris’ reference to ending the war through a hostage deal as problematic, because Israel ensured in its negotiations that the war can continue if Hamas does not release more hostages after the first 42-day stage of the deal.

”I hope this does not bring about a regression” in negotiations, he said.

Another senior diplomatic source said: “I hope that the things the vice president said in her press conference will not be interpreted by Hamas as there being a gap between the U.S. and Israel, thus making a deal less likely.”

A different Israeli diplomatic source said that Netanyahu and Harris seemed to agree in their meeting that there would be no daylight in public on the matter of a hostage deal.

Netanyahu and his delegation were surprised by Harris’ tone, the source said, which was more “aggressive” in her public statement than in the meeting.

”Military pressure and the idea that there is no gap [with the U.S.], including the response to the speech [before both houses of Congress] bring a deal nearer,” he said.

“She talked about a severe humanitarian crisis, the suffering of civilians,” the source said. “[Netanyahu] spoke in his speech and the conversation [with Harris] about all the steps that we took to prevent [a humanitarian crisis in Gaza].”

Another source in Netanyahu’s delegation argued that public pressure on the prime minister makes it harder to reach a hostage deal.

”If you want a deal, pressure Hamas,” he said.

In a public statement following her meeting with Netanyahu, Harris said that “Israel has a right to defend itself, and how it does so matters,” focusing on “the dire humanitarian situation” in Gaza. She emphasized that “she will not be silent” on the matter.

Harris also said, “It is time for this war to end and end in a way where Israel is secure, all the hostages are released, the suffering of the Palestinians in Gaza ends and the Palestinian people can exercise their right to freedom, dignity and self-determination.” 

In their meeting, Netanyahu and Biden also discussed the escalating attacks by Hezbollah on Israel.

“We are looking for a way to resolve it through a diplomatic solution, and if not, then in another way,” an Israeli diplomatic source said. “It is not going to be easy to remove the immediate threat in the short term…The test of any arrangement is whether we can bring the residents back to [Israel’s] north or not.” 

The possibility of normalization between Israel and Saudi Arabia also came up in the Netanyahu-Biden meeting, the diplomatic source said.

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