Washington, 25 July 2024 (dpa/MIA) - US President Joe Biden is set to meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House on Thursday.

The meeting between the two leaders comes after Netanyahu delivered a combative speech to a joint session of Congress on Wednesday in which he appealed for the US and Israel to stand shoulder-to-shoulder to confront the "murderous enemy" Iran.

Tensions between the two leaders have been high, particularly due to the actions of the Israeli government in the Gaza war.

The Biden administration has faulted Netanyahu for not doing enough to protect civilians in Gaza from its ground and air assaults.

Washington has also criticized Israel for not allowing more humanitarian aid into the Palestinian territory, where the health system has been decimated, a risk of famine persists and basic services have been crippled.

A meeting between Netanyahu and newly-minted Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris is also planned on Thursday.

On Friday, former US president and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump is scheduled to meet Netanyahu at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida.

It is Netanyahu's first visit to Washington in almost four years and his first trip abroad since the attack by the Palestinian extremist group Hamas on southern Israel on October 7, which triggered a devastating retaliatory response on the Gaza Strip.

Netanyahu's visit to the United States comes amid political turmoil in the US following Biden's withdrawal from the presidential race.