US Senate majority leader reportedly declines Israeli premier's request to speak to Democratic Caucus

WASHINGTON

US Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer on Wednesday reportedly rejected the Israeli premier's request to speak to Democratic senators.

"When you make these issues partisan, you hurt the cause of Israel," Schumer told reporters when he was asked if he declined Benjamin Netanyahu’s request to address the Senate Democratic caucus.

He said he cares “deeply" about Israel and its long-term future.

Turning to last week's remarks where he called for new elections in Israel and criticized Netanyahu, Schumer said: "Let me say this: I gave this speech out of a real love for Israel."

"If you read the speech, we called only for there to be an election after the hostilities had declined after Hamas was defeated," he said.

Netanyahu called Schumer's comments "totally inappropriate" and said he would not bow to international pressure to halt the war against the Gaza Strip.

Israel has waged a deadly military offensive on the Gaza Strip since an Oct. 7 cross-border attack led by the Palestine resistance group, Hamas, in which nearly 1,200 Israelis were killed.

Nearly 32,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, have since been killed in Gaza, and more than 74,000 injured amid mass destruction and shortages of necessities.

The Israeli war has pushed 85% of Gaza’s population into internal displacement amid a crippling blockade of most food, clean water and medicine, while 60% of the enclave's infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed, according to the UN.

Israel is accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice. An interim ruling in January ordered Tel Aviv to ensure its forces do not commit acts of genocide, and guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.