Israeli Opposition Leader Meets With US Secretary of State in Washington

Following a meeting with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Washington, Israeli Opposition Leader Yair Lapid said on Monday that securing a deal to release the hostages still held in Gaza is “doable,” albeit difficult given the current deadlock in negotiations with Hamas.  

Lapid, who leads the Knesset’s center-left Yesh Atid party, did not join Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s wartime coalition government and has been consistently critical of the current government’s approach to the war.  

“It is a difficult deal. This is a deal we might not like, but it’s doable and therefore needs to be made,” Lapid stated, noting that, if need be, “the Israeli opposition will give a security net to the government.” Lapid is also expected to meet with National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan during the trip. 

The opposition leader’s high-level trip comes at a time of fraying relations between Jerusalem and Washington as both domestic and international pressure mounts against Netanyahu’s government.  

Last week, following the tragic killings of food charity workers in an Israeli air strike, President Joe Biden made the first-ever indication that aid to Israel could be conditioned if the government fails to protect civilians, while on Saturday, tens of thousands of Israelis marched against the government, demanding a deal be made to rescue the hostages.  

“[Biden] is obviously worried about the humanitarian situation in Gaza,” Lapid responded on Monday when questioned about the potential aid pause.  “[Israel] must do our best in order to avoid hurting the people of Gaza. We have no war with the children of Gaza.” but “you have to remember we are fighting a terrorist organization that’s using them as human shields.”  

Fellow opposition leader Benny Gantz, who, unlike Lapid, chose to join the prime minister’s emergency government, called for elections to be scheduled last week. Gantz, who has also stepped in to try and salvage US-Israel relations in recent months, is seen by many as Netanyahu’s fiercest rival in a new election scenario.