Biden Holds Calls with Western Allies, Pope Francis, and Netanyahu

The White House announced that "U.S. President Joe Biden spoke on Sunday with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to discuss the situation in Israel and Gaza." In a related context, the White House stated that "Biden also spoke with Pope Francis on Sunday, and they discussed the ongoing conflict in the Middle East between Israel and Hamas." It was added that they discussed "the need to prevent escalation in the region and work towards achieving lasting peace in the Middle East." The Vatican earlier noted that the call lasted about 20 minutes and "focused on the conditions of the conflict in the world and the necessity of finding pathways to peace." The White House also mentioned that "Biden had phone conversations with leaders of Canada, France, Britain, Germany, and Italy to discuss the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas."