Why was Netanyahu treated with such reverence ?

THE EDITOR, Madam:

When controversial Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu recently addressed a joint session of Congress at the US Capitol, and visited lame-duck President Joe Biden at the White House the next day, the streets of Washington were filled with protesters from all walks of life.

Netanyahu mocked them as being backers of Hamas terrorists, and “Iran’s useful idiots”. No doubt, there were a few extremists matching that description among the many thousands who are not anti-Semitic, but simply want a ceasefire and a peaceful end to the slaughter of so many innocent Palestinians in Gaza. The events in DC refreshed memories of the anti-Vietnam War protests in 1968, another election year when an incumbent Democratic president quit to allow his vice-president carry the torch. Back then, Lyndon Johnson realised his unpopularity was too great to win re-election, and gave Hubert Humphrey the opportunity to face Republican Richard Nixon. The 1968 Democratic National Convention (DNC), held in Chicago, turned into chaos, so it will be interesting to see how much effect ‘peace in Gaza’ protesters have in the Windy City for this year’s DNC.

I also remembered encountering Netanyahu as a frequent guest on CNN’s Larry King Live about 40 years ago, when he was ambassador to the United Nations. He was a very good communicator, and, like so many silver-tongued politicians, could spread propaganda with ease. He returned home, to eventually be elected as prime minister six times since 1996, heading various coalitions in that country’s pizza parliament. Over the years, his reputation has been sullied on numerous occasions, with the likes of French President Nicolas Sarkozy and German Chancellor Angela Merkel, among many, to publicly brand him a liar.

Only last year, an opinion piece in a leading Israeli newspaper, Haaretz, was headlined ‘Netanyahu, Israel’s leading pathological liar’, reporting that his own Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich had called him a “lying son of a liar”. In May, the International Criminal Court announced that it is seeking arrest warrants against Hamas and Israeli leaders, including Mr Netanyahu, to charge them with war crimes and crimes against humanity.

His approval rating is only 32 per cent at home, where he has been indicted for breach of trust, accepting bribes and fraud. Several leading Democrats boycotted Mr Netanyahu’s speech to Congress, while level-headed citizens are amazed that a man with such a tainted record can be treated with such reverence.

BERNIE SMITH

Parksville, BC

Canada