Biden, Netanyahu Speak Amid Mounting Tensions Over Gaza War
In the last month, the rift between both men has widened over Israel’s military campaign against Hamas and the increasingly dire humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
(Bloomberg) -- President Joe Biden spoke Monday with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, as the two leaders clash over the war in Gaza.
Biden and Netanyahu discussed “the latest developments in Israel and Gaza, including the situation in Rafah and efforts to surge humanitarian assistance to Gaza,” the White House said in a statement. The call is the president and prime minister’s first since Feb. 15.
In the last month, the rift between both men has widened over Israel’s military campaign against Hamas and the increasingly dire humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
Biden last Friday praised Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer’s call for new elections in Israel and Netanyahu’s ouster as a “good speech” that “expressed serious concern” shared by “many Americans.” Netanyahu responded on Sunday by calling Schumer’s comments “inappropriate” interference in Israel’s domestic affairs.
The Israeli leader also pledged he would press on with his operation against Hamas, which is considered a terrorist group by the US and European Union, into the southern city of Rafah where more than 1 million displaced Palestinians have fled, despite growing international pressure for a cease-fire.
Biden was caught on a hot microphone after his State of the Union address telling a senator he needed to have a “come to Jesus meeting” with Netanyahu about the situation in Gaza. US officials have said they would not support a Rafah offensive unless Israel produced a viable plan for evacuating civilians. White House spokesman John Kirby said the administration had not seen such plans as of last Friday.
(Updates with White House confirmation of the call and statement, starting in first paragraph)
More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com
©2024 Bloomberg L.P.
