Netanyahu is in Washington at a difficult time for Israel and the U.S. What you should know about his visit.

WASHINGTON — Prime Minister of Israel Benjamin Netanyahu visit to Washington this week is rapid approaching tight between the two allies, which came at a time of extreme political changes in the United States and concerns among American leaders about Netanyahu’s decision history of meddling to American domestic policy.

The main purpose of Netanyahu’s visit is to address a joint session of Congress. But at stake, in his meetings with administration officials, are hopes for progress in U.S.-led mediation efforts to end Israel’s nine-month war with Hamas. The visit comes as the number of Palestinians killed in Israeli attacks in the Gaza Strip nears 40,000. It also comes in a week that has seen modern deaths among surviving hostages — who include Israelis, Americans and others — held by Hamas and other militants since the early hours of the war.

” READ MORE: Recent Israeli airstrikes in Gaza have killed at least 15 people, including children.

Netanyahu planned his trip weeks before the earth suddenly began to shake under the weight of American politics this summer, including the July 13 assassination attempt on Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump and President Joe Biden’s decision on Sunday to abandon his faltering reelection campaign and endorse Vice President Kamala Harris for president.

Protests against Netanyahu’s planned speech before both houses of Congress are planned for Wednesday.

Let’s take a look at the visit:

Why Netanyahu is coming

The political angle for Netanyahu is a sharp decline in his popularity at home, and the visit — at least initially — was seen as a chance to present himself as a global statesman, welcomed by lawmakers and leaders of Israel’s closest ally and the world’s only superpower.

House Speaker Mike Johnson helped bring about Netanyahu’s speech before parliamentariansunderscoring Republicans’ staunch support for the Israeli leader. Netanyahu has a tense relationship with Biden despite the administration’s military and diplomatic support for Israel’s war.

Biden and Netanyahu are expected to meet on Thursday, according to a U.S. official who spoke on condition of anonymity ahead of the White House announcement. Harris will also meet with Netanyahu separately that day. It was still unclear Tuesday whether she would meet with Trump.

Speaking on behalf of the White House, national security adviser Jake Sullivan told a security conference in Colorado last week that Biden plans to focus on figuring out what it will take for the United States, Israel and others to reach an agreement on the release of hostages and a ceasefire in the coming weeks.

Biden called a meeting of campaign staffers on Monday and told them, “I think we’re on the verge” of ending the war.

For his part, Netanyahu pointed to longer-term concerns before flying out of Israel on Monday. He said he wanted to talk to Biden about continuing the war on Hamas and confronting other Iranian-backed armed groups in the region, as well as freeing hostages.

Why Netanyahu’s visit is controversial

Israel’s war has sparked deep divisions in the United States, sparking protests and arrests on college campuses, alienating some voters on both sides of the issue and undermining Biden’s months-long efforts to end the fighting.

The trip is Netanyahu’s first abroad since the war broke out on Oct. 7. It is also his first since the International Criminal Court said it sought his arrest for what it said were possible war crimes in Israel’s offensive in Gaza. Israel denies wrongdoing and the United States does not recognize the ICC.

Netanyahu faces complaints in Israel that he is avoiding the conclusion of the ceasefire agreement and the release of hostages to stay in power, an allegation repeated on Monday by a relative of one of the hostages.

Netanyahu has also not been shy about criticizing the Democratic administration, including BidenIn 2015, the Israeli leader used a speech to both houses of Congress to try to torpedo lawmakers’ and public support for President Barack Obama’s nuclear deal with Iran, denouncing it as a bad and dangerous deal, angering administration officials.

Sullivan said administration officials do not expect a repeat of the 2015 situation.

Netanyahu’s time

It looks bad. Even as Netanyahu headed to Washington on Monday, American politics and voters were still adjusting to the sudden shift in focus from Biden to Harris in the Democratic presidential race. Biden was still in Delaware, trying to shake off the effects of COVID-19.

Harris, as president of the Senate, would typically sit behind foreign leaders, but she will be absent on Wednesday, traveling to Indianapolis, scheduled for the weekend before she became the leading Democratic presidential candidate.

Israeli media reported that Netanyahu also requested a meeting with Trump, but there was no mention of that. Trump has had a mixed relationship with Netanyahu, including cursing him over what Trump portrayed as Netanyahu’s quick recognition of Biden’s victory in the 2020 election.

Protests planned

Netanyahu’s joint speech to Congress will be somewhat different from previous ones, in part because of Democrats’ opposition to the conduct of the war in Gaza.

In Harris’ absence, Senator Pro Tempore Patty Murray, a Washington Democrat, is next in line to fill Netanyahu’s seat, but she is among the lawmakers who are declining to attend. Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Ben Cardin will sit in her place. He told The Associated Press that he hopes Netanyahu will use the speech to present the future to both Israelis and Palestinians.

While it was reported that the families of some of the hostages were traveling with Netanyahu, other relatives who have been critical of his handling of the crisis said they too would be sitting in the chamber.

Some legislators planning to boycott the speech said they would take time to talk to the families of those held by Hamas.

Multiple protests are planned outside the Capitol, some denouncing Israel’s military campaign in its entirety, while others will express support for Israel but pressure Netanyahu to reach a ceasefire agreement and bring home the hostages.

The largest protest is scheduled for Wednesday morning, with organizers planning a march around the Capitol building. demanding the arrest of Netanyahu on charges of war crimes. A permit application submitted to the National Park Service estimated that at least 5,000 people participated.

Smaller protests are planned Tuesday evening and throughout the day Wednesday, including a prayer vigil outside Union Station near the Capitol. Relatives of Israeli hostages are planning a vigil on the National Mall.

Security is strict

Fencing was erected around the Capitol entrance points and the Potomac River hotel where Netanyahu was staying Tuesday. Capitol Police and the Secret Service were out in force, increasing scrutiny and security for the Israeli leader’s visit.

The Metropolitan Police Department has announced an expanded series Street closures which will take most of the week.

The visit comes as the Secret Service, which protects foreign leaders, is under increased scrutiny and intense bipartisan political criticism for its security failures in the Trump crackdown. Kimberly Cheatle, the director of the Secret Service, resigned Tuesday over the failures.