Biden warns Netanyahu against ground offensive in South Gaza
President Biden warned Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel on Sunday that a ground offensive in southern Gaza should not proceed without a plan to protect the more than 1.4 million Palestinians gathered there, the latest sign of White House frustration over the increasing civilian deaths due to Israeli forces. military attack.
During the call on Sunday, the two leaders also discussed, according to a White House description, ongoing negotiations with Hamas to release Israeli hostages in Gaza in return for a ceasefire and the release of Palestinians held in Israeli prisons are held.
Last week, Mr. Netanyahu bluntly dismissed as “ridiculous” a response from Hamas in the negotiations calling for Israel's withdrawal from Gaza and the release of Palestinian prisoners in exchange for the release of more than 100 Israeli hostages in Gaza.
But both US and Israeli officials later said there was still room for compromise in the negotiations. A senior administration official who spoke about Mr. Biden and Mr. Netanyahu's call on condition of anonymity expressed optimism about the state of the talks, adding that they would continue in the coming week to address “significant gaps” between the two parties.
“The President emphasized the need to take advantage of the progress made in negotiations to secure the release of all hostages as quickly as possible,” the White House statement said. “He also called for urgent and specific steps to increase the transit and consistency of humanitarian assistance to innocent Palestinian civilians.”
Mr Biden has strongly supported Israel's decision to retaliate for the October 7 terrorist attack by Hamas, which killed an estimated 1,200 people. But as the White House faces mounting pressure from the Democratic Party's progressive wing over the administration's support for the Israeli military, Biden's criticism has become increasingly blunt. On Thursday, he said Israel's military operations in Gaza had been “exaggerated.”
The comments were a further indication of growing frustration in the White House with Mr Netanyahu over the rising number of civilian deaths in Gaza, where health authorities say more than 27,000 people have been killed in the Hamas-run strip. Mr Netanyahu, who is aiming to appeal to his coalition's far-right flank to maintain his grip on power, has also rejected the Biden administration's call for a two-state solution after the war.
The White House has repeatedly said in recent days that it does not support Netanyahu's likely invasion of Rafah, which borders Egypt. More than half of Gaza's 2.2 million residents are now sheltering in the city. Many of them have been displaced after the Israeli army ordered them to flee south to avoid the war in the north.
Mr. Biden on Sunday “reaffirmed his position that a military operation in Rafah should not proceed without a credible and actionable plan to ensure the safety and support of the more than one million people sheltering there,” the White House said.
In an interview with ABC News broadcast on Sunday, Mr Netanyahu said, without giving details, that Israel was “working out a detailed plan” to move Gaza residents north of Rafah. Egypt has already said it will not accept Palestinians trying to cross the border.
Biden is expected to discuss the war again on Monday when he hosts King Abdullah II of Jordan at the White House.