US President Joe Biden spoke by phone with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday and the two leaders were expected to discuss Israeli plans to retaliate against Iran.
The call was the leaders’ first known conversation since August and coincided with a sharp escalation in Israel’s conflict with both Iran and Iran-backed Lebanese Hezbollah, including an imminent end to the conflict with Iran-backed Hamas in Gaza. There was no sign of a ceasefire.
The Middle East is awaiting Israel’s response to Tehran’s missile attack last week in retaliation for Israel’s military surge in Lebanon. The Iranian attack ultimately caused no deaths in Israel and Washington described it as ineffective.
Netanyahu has promised to make archenemy Iran pay for its missile attack, while Tehran has said any retaliation would result in massive destruction, raising fears of a wider war in the oil-producing region that attracts the United States. Can do.
The White House did not respond to a request for comment.
Relations between Biden and Netanyahu have been strained over the Israeli leader’s handling of the war in Gaza and the conflict with Hezbollah.
In his book “War,” due out next week, journalist Bob Woodward reports that Biden regularly accused Netanyahu of having no strategy, and yelled “Bibi, what the hell?” Following Israeli attacks on them near Beirut and in Iran in July.
Asked about the book, a US official familiar with the two leaders’ past interactions said Biden has used sharp, direct, unfiltered and colorful language with and about Netanyahu during his time in office.
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Galant canceled a Wednesday visit to the Pentagon after Israeli media reported that Netanyahu wanted to speak with Biden first, the Pentagon said.
Tensions have risen in recent weeks as U.S. officials repeatedly turned a blind eye to Israeli actions, according to a person familiar with the matter. These include the assassination by Israel of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah and the explosion of a pager and walkie-talkie used by Hezbollah members in Lebanon, which Israel has neither confirmed nor denied.
Israel has also been slow to share details of its plan to retaliate against Iran’s ballistic missile attack, the person said.
election issue
Biden has faced sharp criticism from international partners as well as members of his own Democratic Party over his inability to leverage leverage, including America’s role as Israel’s main arms supplier, to deter Netanyahu’s attacks.
By extension, Kamala Harris, Biden’s vice president and the Democratic presidential nominee in the November 5 election, has been challenged to defend the administration’s policy on the campaign trail.
Many Arab American voters in Michigan, a key battleground state, are instead supporting independent candidate Jill Stein, a move that could cost Democrats the state and perhaps the White House in their race with Republican former President Donald Trump. Opinion polls show it is too tight. ,
Harris joined the call with Biden and Netanyahu, according to a person familiar with the matter.
Israel’s retaliation is a key topic Washington is expected to consider whether a response is appropriate, a separate person briefed on the discussions said.
Israel and Netanyahu have faced widespread condemnation, particularly over the deaths of some 42,000 Palestinians killed in the Gaza war and more than 2,000 in Lebanon, according to the Palestinian health ministry in Hamas-ruled Gaza.
Israel says it is defending itself after Hamas militants attacked southern Israel on October 7, 2023, killing 1,200 people and taking 250 hostages, and from attacks by other militants, including Hezbollah, which supports Hamas. Is.
Iran’s oil fields
Biden said last Friday that if he were Israel he would consider options for attacking Iranian oil fields, adding that he thought Israel had not reached a conclusion about how to respond to Iran. Go. Last week he also said he would not support an Israeli attack on Iranian nuclear sites.
Israel has faced calls from the United States and other allies to accept ceasefire deals in Gaza and Lebanon, but has said it will continue its military operations until Israelis are safe.
Biden and Netanyahu were expected to discuss the conflicts with Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon, among other topics.
The United States has said it supports Israel going after Iran-backed targets like Hezbollah and Hamas.
According to Palestinian and Lebanese officials, approximately three million people in Gaza and Lebanon have been displaced by Israeli military operations, and Gaza is also facing a humanitarian crisis with shortages of food and fresh water. Israel has said about 70,000 Israelis have been displaced from northern Israel due to Hezbollah attacks in the past year.
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
