Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delivered remarks to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee on the second day of its annual conference.
Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi and Senator Joe Lieberman (I-CT) also spoke earlier in the day. The recent escalation of tension between Israel and Iran was a key topic of discussion.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke about the dangers of allowing Iran to develop nuclear weapons. He said that containment is not an option and Iran must be stopped. He thanked Obama for the recent sanctions, but said that Iran continues to move forward and cannot wait any longer. "I'll never let my people live in the shadow of annihilation," he said.
Earlier in the evening, Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell was critical of Obama's approach on Israel and said that there needs to be clarity on when military force will be used. He said “overwhelming force” should be used to stop Iran, if it is enriching uranium to weapons grade levels, and he will author a Senate resolution to allow such force if Obama doesn't act.
House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi followed him and spoke about the Obama administration's recent sanctions, saying Iran is feeling the bite. She said that there is no bigger threat to Israel than a nuclear Iran and she called on the international community to join the U.S. and Israel in these efforts.
Prior to McConnell and Pelosi, Senator Joe Lieberman (I-CT) spoke to the conference, which states as its mission "working to strengthen relations between the United States and Israel." He said that the U.S. and Israel face "very direct threats" of military force against Iran if diplomacy and sanctions fail to stop its nuclear program.
AIPAC expected up to 14,000 attendees at the annual three-day conference, a crowd nearly twice the usual size.
Prime Minister Netanyahu met with President Obama at the White House earlier in the day, before addressing the conference in the evening session.
President Obama spoke to the conference on Sunday afternoon, and three of the four Republican presidential candidates are also expected to deliver remarks on Tuesday.