Former White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel has warned the US should no longer offer “unconditional support” to Israel, in a speech that was fiercely critical of Benjamin Netanyahu and his government.
The veteran of the Barack Obama presidency was speaking at the Centre for the Study of America at Tel Aviv University on Wednesday, amid speculation that he may be vying for the Democratic nomination in the next American election.
Emanuel, a former mayor of Chicago and most recently US ambassador to Japan under President Joe Biden, pulled no punches as he claimed Israel “had turned from being known for your technological prowess to being considered primarily a territorial pariah. You need to think about what that means for your future.”
The leading Jewish politician whose father was born in Jerusalem has always been an outspoken defender of Israel: but this speech marks a distinct change in tone.
While he spoke of “the corrupt Palestinian leadership”, Emanuel said that “the path forward cannot be held hostage to a past defined exclusively by recriminations”.
He warned that the alliance between the US and Israel was “at a crossroads” and needed to change “significantly” if it were to be maintained.
Emanuel said: “The US has been your foremost and steadfast ally since Israel’s founding.
"We are prepared to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Israel on the long journey toward peace, should you choose that path.
“But the most important thing a true friend can do is to tell the truth even when it’s painful. And today is a day for truth.”
Accusing Netanyahu of leading Israel “into a dead end”, he added: “For too long, American policy toward Israel operated under the assumption that the best thing Washington could do for Jerusalem was to blindly and silently stand behind your government, without conditions, without demands, and without consequences when we disagreed. That has been our mistake.
“Unconditional support has produced a prime minister who has presumed that his strategic interests would incur no cost if he ignored America’s concerns about settlements and sparked a regional war.
“Unconditional support has allowed you to deny food and medical relief to innocent Palestinians suffering in Gaza, leaving the world to conclude that Israelis not only want to kill the Palestinians but that they are completely indifferent to their death, destruction, and suffering.
“Unconditional support has girded a political coalition in the Knesset that learned it can burn Palestinian farmland in the West Bank and terrorise Palestinian families without consequence. Given all of this, we need a fundamentally new and different approach to the alliance.”
Emanuel also called for an end to “the American taxpayer’s subsidy of Israel’s defence budget”, saying: “We in America would continue to ensure that the IDF maintains its qualitative edge.
"But Israel should be able to buy American arms under the same financial terms, the same restrictions, and the same requirements as every other trusted ally that abides by our laws.”
Turning to Iran, Emanuel defended the JCPOA nuclear deal agreed under President Obama, claiming it had “frozen” the weapons programme and saying now it had been scuttled by President Donald Trump Israel is “less safe today, not more”.
Emanuel was lacerating in his criticism of Israeli politicians who are seeking to claim a permanent occupation of the West Bank.
He said: “I want to be very clear about this: the pursuit of a so-called Greater Israel is as self-destructive and fanatical as the chant ‘from the river to the sea’.
"Your government is complicit in the horrors now being inflicted on innocent families in the West Bank.
"That undermines your international legitimacy at a time when you can least afford it.:
Emanuel went on to threaten to use US powers against settlements and their supporters if given the opportunity, especially extremists who resort to violence.
He said: “If I have anything to say about it, every Israeli found attacking Palestinian civilians or their property in the future will be sanctioned.
"Every Israeli official who supports such violence will be sanctioned. Every construction company or bank building or financing illegal settlements will be sanctioned.”
Looking to the future, Emanuel suggested the aspiration to a “two-state solution” should be replaced by a “23-state solution”, arguing: “The Arab nations that have exploited Palestinian rights as a slogan for decades, now need to roll up their sleeves and stand up a governing authority capable of accepting the historic Jewish connection to this land.”
He warned: “That new institution must put an end to the heinous practice of financially rewarding terrorists who kill Jews. And they must stop teaching young children to hate Israelis.
“At the same time, Israel must cease and desist from its cynical game of nurturing destructive organisations like Hamas rather than real partners in pursuit of peace.
"Your government shouldn’t be permitted to take unilateral actions in the West Bank that undermine the possibility of a peace agreement.
"With those preconditions met, we would open the door to a new reality: the Arab League would establish full diplomatic recognition of Israel, and Israel with the members of the Arab League.”
Emanuel said he understood “why Israelis will be reluctant to engage again. The terrible atrocities and unspeakable horrors of October 7 are seared in your collective consciousness, and they have convinced many Israelis that Palestinians want only to kill them.
"After the last three years of war, the Palestinians are convinced of the inverse. We now have two peoples, suffering from deep trauma, incapable of seeing the other’s pain and anguish.
“But hear me now: Israel will be alone if its leaders choose to attempt to annex the West Bank and pursue the fantasy of a greater Israel. America will not and cannot be complicit or complacent in that endeavour. That said, should you choose to pursue peace and security, we will be by your side.
"The end goal of our joint strategy should be a single 23-state historic act of regional integration that establishes full diplomatic relations between Israel and its Arab neighbours.”
The speech came ahead of a new poll released today showing fewer than half of American Jews have a favourable view of the Israeli government.
The Pew Research Centre, which conducts research into religious trends in the US in particular, found that Jewish support for Israelis as a people has dipped slightly but still remains high with 83 per cent taking a favourable view.
But only 47 per cent of American Jews take a favourable view towards the Israeli government, compared with 54 per cent two years ago.
Among Americans as a whole, support for Israel has dropped, while that for Palestinians has risen slightly. Just over half of Americans take a favourable view of Israelis (52 per cent), down from 64 per cent in 2019, while unfavourable views have risen from 28 per cent to 42 per cent over the same period.
Exactly half (50 per cent) have a favourable attitude towards the Palestinians, compared to 46 per cent in 2019: while unfavourable opinions remain almost static – 44 per cent in 2026 compared to 45 per cent seven years ago. (Forty per cent of American Jews profess a favourable view of the Palestinian people).
But fewer than a third of Americans incline towards the Israeli government – 32 per cent, down from 41 per cent in 2019, while over the same period those taking an unfavourable view have risen from 51 per cent to 62 per cent.
But more take an unfavourable view of the Palestinian Authority, 69 per cent, and of Hamas, 84 per cent, while 23 per cent have a favourable view of the former and 10 per cent of the latter.
To get more news, click here to sign up for our free daily newsletter.