After Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced today, Sunday, that he had not spoken to U.S. President Joe Biden since the latter's comments regarding the Israeli military response to the Hamas attack being "exaggerated," Israeli media reported a call described as "tense" that lasted 45 minutes. According to the same media, Biden expressed concern during his call with Netanyahu about the impact of a military operation in Rafah on the humanitarian situation.
The White House stated that Biden informed Netanyahu that Israel should not proceed with a military operation in Rafah without a plan to ensure the safety of about one million people seeking refuge there. The call also focused on ongoing efforts to secure the release of hostages held by Hamas since its attack on Israel on October 7.
Israeli Channel 12 reported that Biden asked Israel to participate in a meeting in Cairo scheduled for this Tuesday. A senior official in President Biden's administration mentioned on Sunday that negotiators working on a multi-stage framework to secure the release of remaining hostages held in Gaza had made "real progress" in the past few weeks.
The official noted that this agreement was the main focus of the 45-minute phone call between Biden and Prime Minister Netanyahu earlier today, emphasizing that there still exist some "significant" gaps related to this agreement that need to be addressed. Israeli media commented that Biden effectively gave Israel the green light to expand its war in Rafah through the nature of the conversation.
