Israeli prime minister delivers address to Congress

WASHINGTON (NBC, KYMA/KECY) - Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is in Washington Wednesday, preparing for a high-stakes address to a joint meeting of Congress and with pressure mounting to halt the nine-month war in Gaza and bring hostages home.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is set delivering a highly anticipated, but highly controversial, address to a joint session of Congress. It is the fourth time the Israeli leader has spoken in this venue, more than any other foreign ally, including Winston Churchill.

Now, what the families of American hostages are hoping to hear from the prime minister is that he has reached a deal with hamas to bring their loved ones home after nearly 300 days in captivity.

But, the Israeli government is signaling that that is unlikely as the prime minister says conditions are ripening for a deal that they are not there yet.

However, the families of these hostages say time is running out for their loved ones and they do not feel that the prime minister is showing the level of urgency that he should be given this situation.

A number of prominent American politicians will be skipping this speech. Amongst them is Vice President Kamala Harris as she is at a campaign event in Indiana, but also a number of fairly mainstream Democratic Senators, including Dick Durbin (D-IL), Patty Murray (D-WA), and Chris Van Hollen (D-MD).

Now this all comes as Israel steps up a new offensive in the southern city of Khan Younis in Gaza. Israel says Hamas has regrouped there, but tens of thousands of Palestinian civilians have been displaced by the fighting, with dozens killed, according to the Health Ministry.

And for many, they fear that this is a sign of what has become effectively a war without ends in Gaza with Israel sweeping through these cities trying to clear out Hamas, displacing many, many civilians, causing a lot of destruction, leaving only to have Hamas regroup and Israel returning to those same cities once again.

To watch the livestream of Netanyahu's address, see attached video.