US envoy says public spats between Jerusalem, DC should be kept ‘to a minimum’

US ambassador to Israel Jack Lew has strongly suggested that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu should alter his approach to conflicts with Washington. 

"My view is you try to keep the daylight to a minimum, not look for things that exaggerate how much space there is," Lew stated, without directly naming Netanyahu.

Lew remarked that Israel "has some work to do" to regain bipartisan support in the US. 

Law was speaking at Reichman University’s Aaron Institute for Economic Policy’s annual conference. Lew mentioned that US-Israel relations are "not in a bad place substantively, but the image that has been created is not a great one".

He argued that Israel needs to better communicate its perspective on the war in Gaza to the US and the global community.

"The images in America are brutal. There are enemies of Israel that are actively telling the story in a very negative way," he said.

Lew attributed Israel’s moderate performance in public diplomacy to domestic political factors: "Part of the reason the world hasn’t seen everything Israel has done is because it was done in an environment where it would be great for the story to be told outside of the country, but not so much interest in advertising it inside the country."

He emphasised the Biden administration’s efforts to present Israel’s side of the story: "We’ve been telling the story very clearly that Israel had a right and responsibility to defend itself. We work day and night to make sure things like humanitarian assistance are provided. And Israel needs to tell the story that it is making sure that people are getting what they need for there not to be a famine."

Lew also clarified that there is no famine in Gaza: "It’s a really hard situation, but there is not a famine."