{"id":16848,"date":"2024-03-12T00:47:17","date_gmt":"2024-03-12T00:47:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/2024\/03\/12\/rift-between-biden-and-netanyahu-widens-as-israeli-leader-vows-to-press-on-with-rafah-operation\/"},"modified":"2024-03-12T00:47:17","modified_gmt":"2024-03-12T00:47:17","slug":"rift-between-biden-and-netanyahu-widens-as-israeli-leader-vows-to-press-on-with-rafah-operation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/2024\/03\/12\/rift-between-biden-and-netanyahu-widens-as-israeli-leader-vows-to-press-on-with-rafah-operation\/","title":{"rendered":"Rift between Biden and Netanyahu widens as Israeli leader vows to press on with Rafah operation"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

Divisions between US President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu burst out into the open again over the weekend as the two traded barbs in interviews over Israel\u2019s war against Hamas in Gaza. <\/p>\n

In a Saturday interview with MSNBC, Biden said Netanyahu was \u201churting Israel more than helping Israel\u201d in his war on Gaza, adding that he wants \u201cto see a ceasefire\u201d in the context of a deal that also brings back Israeli hostages held there by Hamas. <\/p>\n

Biden has for months warned that Israel risks losing international support over mounting civilian casualties in Gaza, where the death toll has passed 31,000. <\/p>\n

Netanyahu in response said the American president was wrong in his assessment and fiercely defended his policies in Gaza, especially a looming ground operation into the southernmost city of Rafah that Biden and other world leaders have warned against. <\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t know exactly what the president meant, but if he meant by that, that I\u2019m pursuing private policies against the wish of the majority of Israelis, and that this is hurting the interests of Israel then he\u2019s wrong on both counts,\u201d Netanyahu\u00a0said in an interview with Politico\u00a0and German media outlet Bild, referring to Biden\u2019s remarks about the prime minister hurting Israel. <\/p>\n

An estimated 1.5 million Palestinians are sheltering in Rafah, which has been under Israeli bombardment for weeks. Crammed into a sprawling tent city packed against the Egyptian border, families there are living with severe shortages of food, water, medicine and shelter, and the daily risk of being killed. <\/p>\n

In his Saturday interview, Biden said that an Israeli invasion of Rafah would be a red line, before adding in the same breath that crossing it would not result in punitive measures against Israel. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt is a red line, but I am never going to leave Israel,\u201d Biden said. \u201cThe defense of Israel is still critical, so there\u2019s no red line I\u2019m going to cut off all weapons.\u201d <\/p>\n

Netanyahu on Sunday said he intends to move forward with the invasion, despite Biden\u2019s warning and regardless of a ceasefire-hostage deal. The operation would not last more than two months, he said, but did not provide specifics on the timeline. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ll go there. We\u2019re not going to leave (Gaza),\u201d Netanyahu said Sunday in an interview with German outlet Axel Springer. \u201cYou know, I have a red line. You know what the red line is, that October 7 doesn\u2019t happen again.\u201d <\/p>\n

As of this weekend, the Biden administration has yet to see any kind of humanitarian or evacuation plan from the Israeli government that seeks to ensure the safety of civilians in Rafah before launching a military operation there, the two US officials said Sunday. <\/p>\n

The US has strongly supported Israel through its war in Gaza, which has so far killed more than 31,000 people and injured more than 72,000, according to the Gaza Ministry of Health. <\/p>\n

The rising death toll, widespread destruction and unfolding humanitarian crisis have cast a shadow on Biden\u2019s 2024 reelection bid, as anger over his administration\u2019s handling of Israel\u2019s war\u00a0sparked a campaign to convince Michigan Democratic voters to cast protest ballots. <\/p>\n

Biden and Netanyahu have known each other for decades and have had disagreements even before October 7, including the president\u2019s unease with the Israeli leader\u2019s far-right government. As the conflict in Gaza has dragged on and pressure has grown from within his party to rein in Israel, Biden\u2019s criticism has become more vocal. <\/p>\n

Last month, Biden described the war as \u201cover the top,\u201d one of his sharpest rebukes since the conflict began. Late last year, Biden and Netanyahu publicly sparred with over plans for post-war Gaza. <\/p>\n

The rhetoric from the administration has only grown stronger of late. Vice President Kamala Harris last week called for \u201can immediate ceasefire\u201d and for more humanitarian aid into Gaza, \u201cgiven the immense scale of suffering\u201d in the enclave. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt (Israel) cannot have 30,000 more Palestinians dead,\u201d Biden told MSNBC Saturday. And in a statement marking the start of the Islamic month of Ramadan the same day, the president said that the humanitarian crisis in Gaza is \u201cfront of mind\u201d for many, including him. \u201cMore than 30,000 Palestinians have been killed, most of them civilians, including thousands of children,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n

In a candid moment caught on a hot mic, Biden revealed his frustration with Netanyahu after his State of the Union speech last week. <\/p>\n

\u201cI told him, Bibi \u2013 and don\u2019t repeat this \u2013 but you and I are going to have a come to Jesus meeting,\u201d Biden was heard telling Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Senator Michael Bennett. <\/p>\n

Asked about the moment, Biden told MSNBC the comment meant he intends to have a serious meeting soon with Netanyahu. \u201cI\u2019ve known Bibi for 50 years, and he knew what I meant by it.\u201d <\/p>\n

\u201cWhat\u2019s happening is that he has a right to defend Israel, a right to continue to pursue Hamas,\u201d Biden said. <\/p>\n

\u201cBut he must, he must, he must, he must, pay more attention to the innocent lives being lost as a consequence of the actions taken.\u201d <\/p>\n

On Monday, Biden told reporters there are currently no plans for a \u201ccome to Jesus\u201d meeting with Netanyahu and no plans for him to address the Israeli parliament \u201cat this moment.\u201d <\/p>\n\n

This post appeared first on cnn.com<\/div>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Divisions between US President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu burst out into the open again over the weekend as the two traded barbs in interviews over Israel\u2019s war against Hamas in Gaza. In a Saturday interview with MSNBC, Biden said Netanyahu was \u201churting Israel more than helping Israel\u201d in his war on <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":16849,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[23],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-16848","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16848","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16848"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16848\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/16849"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16848"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16848"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/shareperformanceinsight.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16848"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}