United States President Joe Biden on Tuesday (Dec 12) issued a warning to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as he said that Israel is “starting to lose the support” of the international community because of the Gaza bombing, which has killed thousands of Palestinians.
“They’re starting to lose that support,” said Biden, further adding that Netanyahu needs to change his hardline government. With Biden’s warning, the pressure on Netanyahu has increased… it intensified further after the UN General Assembly demanded an immediate ceasefire.
The war, which is now in its third month, started after the Palestinian militant group Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, killing around 1,200 people and taking over 200 people as hostages back to Gaza, Israeli officials have said. Under a one-week truce deal, 105 hostages were released from Gaza in exchange for 240 Palestinians jailed by Israel.
In response to the October 7 attack, Israel launched a massive ground and air campaign, which has killed more than 18,400 people in Gaza, according to the Hamas-run health ministry.
Biden also said that the Israeli government “doesn’t want” a two-state solution. “Bibi’s got a tough decision to make,” Biden said, referring to Netanyahu and his hardline right-wing government.
“This is the most conservative government in Israel’s history,” he said, adding that the Israeli government “doesn’t want a two-state solution.”
Biden’s remarks to donors to his re-election campaign in 2024 were his most critical of Netanyahu for the Israel-Hamas conflict.
“Israel’s security can rest on the United States, but right now it has more than the United States. It has the European Union, it has Europe, it has most of the world … But they’re starting to lose that support by indiscriminate bombing that takes place,” Biden said.
Watch: Did Israel use white phosphorous in Gaza war?
UN calls for humanitarian ceasefire
On the same day, the UN General Assembly overwhelmingly passed the resolution on Tuesday demanding an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza.
The body, which includes all 193 UN member nations, voted 153 in favour of the resolution, exceeding the 140 or so countries that have routinely backed resolutions condemning Russia for its invasion of Ukraine.
Ten countries, including the United States and Israel, voted against it, while 23 abstained.
Palestinian UN envoy Riyad Mansour said the US could not continue “to ignore this massive power” referring to the global protests in support of Palestine. He described the vote as a culmination of public sentiment.
“It is our collective duty to continue on this path until we see an end to this aggression against our people, to see this war stopping against our people. It is our duty to save lives,” he told reporters.
Disclaimer: WION takes utmost care to accurately and responsibly report ongoing developments on the Israel-Palestine conflict after the Hamas attacks. However, we cannot independently verify the authenticity of all statements, photos and videos.
(With inputs from agencies)
