During a telephone interview with Benjamin Netanyahu – the first since March 18 – the American president suggested, for the first time, Thursday April 4, that the United States was warning Israel about its support. Mr. Biden “clearly stated that U.S. policy toward Gaza will be determined by our assessment of the concrete steps Israel has taken” to protect civilians, the White House reported in a statement.
“President Biden stressed that the strikes against humanitarian workers and the general humanitarian situation [in Gaza] are unacceptable,” reports the White House, which adds that the American president, during this call, “insisted on the need for Israel to announce and implement a series of specific, concrete and measurable measures to address civilian harm, humanitarian suffering and the safety of humanitarian workers.”
Mr Biden also urged Mr Netanyahu to “immediately reach an agreement” for an “immediate ceasefire” in the Gaza Strip. White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby then said the United States was calling for a “dramatic increase” in humanitarian aid entering the Palestinian enclave, also acknowledging “dissatisfaction growing” in front of the Israeli Prime Minister.
“Growing discontent”
Relations between the two allies have been strained since Washington allowed the vote by the UN Security Council at the end of March of a resolution calling for an “immediate ceasefire”, rejected by Israel and without effect on field. However, the United States reportedly authorized the transfer of thousands of bombs to Israel that same Monday, report The Washington Post and CNN, citing several American officials. According to The New York Times, Jill Biden asked her husband to end the conflict in the Gaza Strip.
“What we expect and hope to see in the hours and days to come is a dramatic increase in humanitarian aid, the opening of new crossing points and a reduction in violence against civilians and certainly aid workers,” White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters.
The telephone call between Joe Biden and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu comes against a backdrop of “growing discontent” in Washington with its ally, according to a White House spokesperson. “Yes, there is growing discontent,” said John Kirby, when asked about Joe Biden’s state of mind while Benjamin Netanyahu has so far remained deaf to his calls for action in the face of the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza.