WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden warned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that future U.S. support for Israel’s Gaza war depends on the quick implementation of new steps to protect civilians and aid workers.
Biden and Netanyahu ‘s roughly 30-minute call just days after Israeli airstrikes killed seven food aid workers in Gaza added a new layer of complication to the leaders’ increasingly strained relationship. Biden’s message marks a sharp change in his administration’s steadfast support for Israel’s war efforts, with the U.S. leader for the first time threatening to rethink his backing if Israel doesn’t change its tactics and allow much more humanitarian aid into Gaza.
The White House would not specify what could change about U.S. policy, but it could include altering military sales to Israel and America’s diplomatic backup on the world stage. Administration officials said they expected the Israelis to make announcements on next steps within hours or days and that the U.S. would then assess whether the Israeli moves go far enough.
Biden “made clear the need for Israel to announce and implement a series of specific, concrete, and measurable steps to address civilian harm, humanitarian suffering, and the safety of aid workers,” the White House said in a statement following the leaders’ call. “He made clear that U.S. policy with respect to Gaza will be determined by our assessment of Israel’s immediate action on these steps.”
Biden also told Netanyahu that an “immediate cease-fire is essential” and urged Israel to reach such an accord “without delay,” according to the White House, which described the conversation as “direct” and “honest.”
There was no immediate reaction to the call from the Israeli government.
The leaders’ conversation comes as the World Central Kitchen, founded by restaurateur José Andrés to provide immediate food relief to disaster-stricken areas, called for an independent investigation into the Israeli strikes that killed the group’s staff members, including an American citizen.
The White House has said the U.S. has no plans to conduct its own investigation even as it called on Israel to do more to prevent the harming of innocent civilians and aid workers as it carries out its operations in Gaza.
Separately, Secretary of State Antony Blinken told reporters in Brussels that U.S. support would be curtailed if Israel doesn’t make significant adjustments to how it’s carrying out the war. “If we don’t see the changes that we need to see, there will be changes in our policy,” he said.
White House national security spokesman John Kirby echoed the call for “tangible” and “concrete” changes to be taken by the Israelis beyond reiterating long stated calls for allowing additional aid to get into Gaza.
“If there’s no changes to their policy in their approaches, then there’s going to have to be changes to ours,” Kirby said. “There are things that need to be done. There are too many civilians being killed.”
The requests for Israel to end the conflict quickly were increasing from all sides of the political spectrum, with former President Donald Trump, the presumptive nominee for the Republicans in the upcoming election against Biden, stating on Thursday that Israel was completely losing the battle of public opinion and urging for an end to the violence. Donald Trump, the Republicans’ likely nominee to face Biden in the fall, mentioned on Thursday that Israel was absolutely losing the public relations battle and called for an end to the violence. “absolutely losing the PR war” and urged for an end to the bloodshed.
He said, “Finish it and let’s return to peace and stop killing people. And that’s a very simple statement. They need to finish it. Get it over with quickly because we need to get back to normalcy and peace.”
The two leaders also talked about Iranian threats against Israel, Kirby said. Earlier this week, Iranian leaders promised to retaliate after an airstrike widely attributed to Israel destroyed Iran’s Consulate in Syria, resulting in the deaths of 12 people, including two top Iranian generals. Iran’s President Ebrahim Raisi stated on Wednesday that the attack “will not remain without answer.” widely blamed on Israel destroyed Iran’s Consulate in Syria, killing 12 people, including two elite Iranian generals. Iran’s President Ebrahim Raisi said Wednesday the attack “will not remain without answer.” Ebrahim Raisi stated on Wednesday that the attack “will not go unanswered.”
Biden also expressed renewed concerns about Netanyahu’s plan to carry out an operation in the southern city of Rafah, where about 1.5 million displaced Palestinians are sheltering, as Israel aims to eliminate Hamas following the militant group’s deadly Oct. 7 attack. Vice President Kamala Harris, Blinken and national security adviser Jake Sullivan also joined the call. However, the Biden administration has continued with arms transfers and deliveries to Israel, many of which were approved years ago but had only been partially or not at all fulfilled. This week, the Democratic administration approved the sale to Israel of over 1,000 500-pound (225-kilograms) bombs and more than 1,000 1,000-pound (450-kilogram) bombs.the deadly Oct. 7 attack
Officials said the transfers had been approved before the publication of the list on Monday — the day Israeli airstrikes hit a World Central Kitchen aid convoy in Gaza, killing seven of the group’s employees — and that they fell below the threshold for new congressional notification. They also noted that the bombs are not scheduled for delivery to Israel until 2025.
Israel has acknowledged responsibility for the strikes but stated that the convoy was not the intended target and the deaths of the workers were accidental. The country is continuing to investigate the circumstances surrounding the killings.
Andrés criticized the Israeli military harshly for the strike, and his organization has suspended its work in Gaza.
Andrés strongly condemned the Israeli military for the strike, and his organization has halted its operations in Gaza.
“The Israeli government needs to stop this indiscriminate killing. It needs to stop restricting humanitarian aid, stop killing civilians and aid workers, and stop using food as a weapon,” he wrote on X. “No more innocent lives lost.”
The conflict in Gaza began when Hamas-led militants entered southern Israel, killed approximately 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and took around 250 people hostage. Hamas-led militants invaded southern Israel, killing around 1,200 individuals, most of whom were civilians, and holding approximately 250 people captive.Hamas-led militants invaded southern Israel, killing around 1,200 individuals, most of whom were civilians, and holding approximately 250 people captive.
The Israel's military campaign in Gaza has been one of the deadliest and most destructive in recent history, according to experts. Within two months, researchers claim, the offensive has caused more damage than the destruction of Syria’s Aleppo between 2012 and 2016. The Israeli military campaign in Gaza, according to experts, is one of the deadliest and most destructive in recent history. Within two months, researchers claim, the offensive has caused more damage than the razing of Syria’s Aleppo. the razing of Syria’s Aleppo between 2012 and 2016, Ukraine’s Mariupol or, relatively, the Allied bombing of Germany during World War II. It has caused more civilian deaths than the U.S.-led coalition did in its three-year effort against the Islamic State group.
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AP writers Matthew Lee in Brussels, Jill Colvin in New York and Colleen Long and Chris Megerian contributed.
