President Biden said Saturday that he believes Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is “hurting Israel more than helping it” in how he has handled its war against Hamas in Gaza.
The US President expressed his support for Israel's right to go after Hamas after the October 7 attack, but said of Netanyahu that he “must pay more attention to the innocent lives that are lost as a result of the actions taken.” Biden has warned for months that Israel risks losing international support due to mounting civilian casualties in the Gaza Strip, and recent comments in an interview with MSNBC's Jonathan Capehart signaled an increasingly tense relationship between the two leaders.
“It goes against what Israel stands for,” Biden said of the death toll in Gaza. “I think this is a big mistake.”
Biden said that a possible Israeli invasion of the Gaza city of Rafah, where more than 1.3 million Palestinians live, is a “red line” for him, but that he would not cut off weapons such as Iron Dome interceptor missiles that protect the Israeli civilian population. From missile attacks on the region.
“It is a red line, but I will never leave Israel,” he said when asked about Rafah. “The defense of Israel is still crucial, so there is no red line, and I will cut off all weapons so they don’t have the Iron Dome to protect them.”
Biden said he was willing to present his case directly to the Israeli Knesset, including making another trip to the country. He traveled to Israel weeks after the October 7 attack. He declined to go into details about how or whether such a trip might take place.
The US President had hoped to secure a temporary ceasefire before the start of Ramadan, although this looks increasingly unlikely with Hamas rejecting the deal pushed by the US and its allies that would have seen fighting halted for about six weeks, and more prisoners released. . Hostages held by Hamas and Palestinian prisoners held by Israel, and increased humanitarian aid to Gaza.
Israel remains committed to continuing its invasion and eliminating Hamas, which killed about 1,200 people in Israel and took about 250 hostage on October 7. The armed group released dozens of hostages during the November truce, but refuses to release more without guarantees. Complete end to hostilities.
Meanwhile, more than 30,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza, according to the Hamas-run Ministry of Health, the majority of them women and children, and hundreds of thousands are suffering from hunger.
Biden indicated that CIA Director William Burns is in the region trying to revive the deal.
The president's comments came after he was caught on a hot mic following his State of the Union address Thursday night telling Sen. Michael Bennet (D-Colo.) that he and the Israeli leader would need to “come to the Jesus meeting.”
In return, Bennett congratulated Biden on his speech and urged the president to maintain pressure on Netanyahu over the growing humanitarian concerns in Gaza. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg were also part of the brief conversation.
Biden then responds, using Netanyahu's nickname, saying: “I told him, 'Bibi, don't repeat this, but we will have a 'Come to Jesus' meeting.”
An aide to the president standing nearby then spoke quietly into the president's ear, appearing to alert Biden that the microphones remained on while he worked in the room.
“I'm on a hot mic here,” Biden says after being nudged. “Good. That's good.”
Miller is an Associated Press White House correspondent.
