Martin Indyk
Martin IndykReuters

In the interest of fairness, former US ambassador to Israel Martin Indyk believes, Congress must invite Labor Party head Yitzhak Herzog to speak.

“Why should Netanyahu be able to speak and Herzog not,” asked Indyk in a post on social media network Twitter.

The comment comes in the wake of sharp criticism of Congress's invitation to Netanyahu by the Israeli left.

Speaking on Israel Radio, MK Shai Nachman (Labor) decried the invitation - and Netanyahu's acceptance of it. “As is his habit, the Prime Minister is worming his way into the heart of the 'enemy,' getting into another dispute with the White House and the president with whom he has never gotten along.”

In response, Likud MK Ofir Akunis said that Nachman's rhetoric was unacceptable, and that Netanyahu was a welcome guest in the United States.

In his tweet, Indyk clearly allied himself with the Labor point of view. “If Boehner is placing Congress into the midst of the Israeli elections, why don't the Democrats invite Herzog too?”

At a debate in December at the Saban Forum, Indyk, who continues to advocate for a full Israeli withdrawal from Judea and Samaria, was confronted by Economics Minister Naftali Bennett.

In a heated portion of the dialogue, Bennett asked Indyk: "How many people need to die before you wake up?" 

"I believe that the last summer moved anywhere from 10% of Israelis from the left to center, and from center to the right," Bennett stated, referring to public feelings in the wake of Operation Protective Edge.

"It wasn't a two day thing, but a fifty day thing. People felt to some degree helpless...these missiles and rockets were fired from the very place we did things right."