Pro-Israel Democratic Congressman Ritchie Torres (D-NY) voiced rare criticism of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday after the latter published a video in which he accused the US of withholding arms from Israel, a claim which the White House has denied.
"If you are looking to undermine the bipartisanship of the US-Israel relationship, then release a public video attacking the Biden Administration, which, despite hysterical opposition from the far left, has held firm in support of Israel for eight months and counting," Torres wrote.
He continued: "Disagreements should be had in private. Hamas is emboldened by even the appearance of a ruptured relationship.
"I call out my own country, the US, when it fails to keep its differences with Israel private. I will do the same to Israel when it fails to keep its differences with the US private."
The Congressman added: "I have been consistent in calling out both sides, whether people like it or not.
"No good will ever come from the airing of dirty laundry from either side of the relationship. In the present conflict, the only beneficiary of a ruptured relationship is Hamas," he concluded.
Rep. Torres has been one of the more vocally pro-Israel Democrats in Congress and even visited the Jewish state in April. In the past, he has called out his party's senior, member Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer's criticism of the Israeli Prime Minister.
In a video statement released on Tuesday, Prime Minister Netanyahu recounted: "When Secretary Blinken was recently here in Israel, we had a candid conversation, I said I deeply appreciated the support the U.S. has given Israel from the beginning of the war."
He added: "But I also said something else, I said it's inconceivable that in the past few months, the administration has been withholding weapons and ammunition to Israel. Israel, America's closest ally, [is] fighting for its life, fighting against Iran and our other common enemies."
According to Netanyahu, "Secretary Blinken assured me that the administration is working day and night to remove these bottlenecks. I certainly hope that's the case. It should be the case.
"During World War II, Churchill told the United States, Give us the tools, we'll do the job. And I say, give us the tools and we'll finish the job a lot faster,” Netanyahu concluded.