Arabic version: مقال رأي يبحث استراتيجية نتنياهو السياسية في الولايات المتحدة
According to Al Jazeera, an Economist/YouGov poll released on July 28 found that 49 percent of Americans believed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu should be arrested under an International Criminal Court warrant, while 47 percent said they believed he had committed war crimes in Gaza. The opinion article, written by Washington-based journalist Said Arikat and published on July 31, argues that the findings reflect a major shift in US public attitudes towards Israel under Netanyahu’s leadership.
Arikat contends that Netanyahu weakened decades of bipartisan US support by aligning Israel more closely with Republican politics. The article identifies Netanyahu’s 2015 address to a joint session of Congress, delivered after a Republican invitation during the Iran nuclear debate and in opposition to then-President Barack Obama, as a decisive rupture. It says Netanyahu later viewed policy decisions during Donald Trump’s presidency as confirmation that Republican support could replace broader Democratic backing.
The article notes that Trump recognised Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, moved the US embassy, recognised Israeli sovereignty over the occupied Golan Heights, withdrew from the Iran nuclear agreement and abandoned pressure over settlements and demands for a Palestinian state. Arikat argues that alliances depend on institutions, shared values and broad legitimacy rather than a single administration.
It also says President Joe Biden provided military, diplomatic and political support to Israel after the October 7, 2023 attacks, including visiting Israel during wartime, accelerating military assistance and defending it at the United Nations. The author writes that Netanyahu publicly confronted Washington over weapons, post-war governance, humanitarian access and strategic questions.
Arikat further argues that Gaza’s devastation, humanitarian restrictions, statements by senior Israeli ministers and Netanyahu’s coalition policies have contributed to declining support. The article says demands within the Democratic Party for conditions on military assistance have grown, while younger voters increasingly discuss the conflict through occupation, apartheid and universal human rights. It concludes that political legitimacy, trust and bipartisan support are strategic assets that can be lost more quickly than they can be rebuilt.
