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New Delhi: US President Joe Biden on Wednesday said that Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was not taking adequate steps to boost humanitarian aid to Gaza, news agency AP reported.
“We’ll see what he does in terms of meeting the commitments that he made to me,” Biden said at the White House.
Although the number of trucks entering Gaza has grown since Biden’s discussion with Netanyahu last week, the US president said Israel ought to open another access point in Gaza’s northern region.
After backing Israel’s military campaign against Hamas for months, the White House has stepped up its pressure on Israel to reach a ceasefire agreement and adopted a sterner position that has shaken the decades-long alliance between the two countries and amplified Israel’s international seclusion over the conflict.
Meanwhile, President Joe Biden expressed disapproval of the Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu’s handling of the ongoing conflict in Gaza, calling it a “mistake” in a recent interview. Biden stated that he does not agree with Netanyahu’s approach to the war.
“I think what he’s doing is a mistake. I don’t agree with his approach,” Biden said in an interview with Univision, a US-based Spanish-language TV network.
“What I’m calling for is for the Israelis to just call for a ceasefire, allow for the next six, eight weeks, total access to all food and medicine going into the country,” he added.
This criticism comes just a few days after the strongest condemnation yet by the US government of Israel’s actions since the war broke out with Hamas.
Last week, the US warned that its policy on Gaza going forward would depend on whether Israel takes steps to safeguard the well-being of Palestinian civilians and aid workers.
According to reports, President Biden told Netanyahu over a phone call lasting less than 30 minutes that Israel needs to act quickly to reduce harm for Palestinian civilians. The White House’s account of their conversation highlighted that the US is deeply concerned about protecting Palestinian lives and enabling humanitarian assistance during the conflict.
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