Biden warns Netanyahu that his support for Israel will depend on protecting civilians in Gaza

US President Joe Biden warned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu this Thursday that Future US support for the war in Gaza will depend on the “concrete” actions it takes to minimize harm to civilians in the Gaza Strip. and ensure the safety of humanitarian workers.

The two leaders spoke by telephone this Thursday, in what represents their first direct contact since the Israeli attack that last Monday killed seven World Central Kitchen (WCK) workers, the NGO founded by the Spanish chef José Andrés.

One of the deceased workers was Palestinian and the others were nationals of the United States, Australia, Canada, Poland and the United Kingdom, so WCK called on those countries to join its call for an independent investigation.

José Andrés' organization reported that the three vehicles in the convoy were deliberately attacked at a range of more than one kilometer until all its members were completely eliminated.

As indicated by the White House in a statement, Biden took advantage of the call to ask Netanyahu to announce and implement “a series of specific, concrete and measurable steps to address harm to civilians, humanitarian suffering and the safety of aid workers.

What we hope to see here in the coming hours and days is a drastic increase in humanitarian assistance

He then warned that His government's future policy toward Gaza “will depend” on the actions Israel takes to comply with those requests. and considered that the attacks against humanitarian workers and the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip, where 33,000 people have died, “are unacceptable.”

Biden also stressed to Netanyahu that “an immediate ceasefire is essential to stabilize and improve the humanitarian situation and protect innocent civilians,” and urged him to empower his negotiators to conclude an agreement without delay for the hostages to return home.

Minutes later, White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby also demanded that Israel allows a “drastic increase” in humanitarian aid in the Gaza Strip, and stated that Washington wants concrete measures to be taken “in the coming hours and days.”

“What we hope to see here in the coming hours and days is a dramatic increase in humanitarian assistance arriving, the opening of additional crossings and a reduction in violence against civilians and certainly against humanitarian workers,” Kirby said.

The White House has been heavily criticized for its continued military support for the Israeli government of Benjamin Netanyahu for its offensive in Gaza. particularly by human rights organizations, the Arab and Muslim community in the US, and some legislators and Administration workers.

In fact, the latest Gallup poll released in March revealed that 55 percent of Americans disapprove of Israel's military actions in Gaza. That same poll showed that U.S. support for the offensive in the Palestinian enclave fell from 50 percent in November to 36 percent in March.

For this reason, Biden's words in his conversation with Netanyahu represent a hardening of tone.

Washington, for example, has been urging Netanyahu for weeks to reduce civilian deaths and has opposed a plan to invade Rafah, the city in the south of the Palestinian enclave to which more than a million displaced people fled during the war.

An immediate ceasefire is essential to stabilize and improve the humanitarian situation

In March, furthermore, Washington avoided using its veto power in the United Nations Security Council, as it had been doing until now, and allowed the approval of a resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, the first of its kind, sparking a discussion with Israel.

And on Monday, after the death of the seven aid workers in Gaza, Biden said he was “outraged” and considered that Israel is not doing “enough” to protect organizations that help civilians in Gaza. facing a catastrophic humanitarian situation.

But although in recent months he has been critical of Israel's military strategy in Gaza, it is about the first time that Biden raises the possibility of conditioning support for Israel in the middle of the war.

The same spokesman for the White House National Security Council acknowledged this Thursday that the phone call between the American president and the Israeli prime minister It occurred in a context of Washington's “growing frustration” with its ally.

“Yes, there has been growing frustration,” he told reporters.

Biden did not specify when or how he might change his approach to the war between Israel and Hamas., which is in its sixth month. But his statement is the closest he has come to imposing new requirements on American support for Israel's military operations.

In practice, however, The Biden administration has not modified the support it has provided to Israel since the beginning of the conflict.

This same Thursday, The Washington Post reported that the US approved on Monday – the same day the attack on WCK took place – a new arms package for Israel that includes 2,000 small and medium diameter bombs.

According to State Department sources cited by The Washington Post, the new transfer of bombs corresponds to a military package authorized by Congress years ago, long before the current Israeli offensive on Gaza.

In the White House statement on The conversation between Biden and Netanyahu did not mention this delivery of weapons and it is only said that both also spoke about Iran's threats to Israel. In this regard, Biden made it clear that the United States firmly supports Israel in the face of these threats.

Kirby himself also tried to tone down what Biden said and stated an hour after the conversation that the United States' support for Israel's right to defend itself remains “strong.”

“Our support for Israel's self-defense remains strong. They face a number of threats and the United States is not going to give up,” Kirby said.

*With AFP, Efe and Bloomberg