The US president, a lifelong supporter of Israel, has resisted pressure to withhold aid or halt the shipment of weapons to the country. His warning marked the first time he has threatened to potentially condition aid.
US President Joe Biden issued a stark warning to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday that future US support for Israel's Gaza war depends on the swift implementation of new steps to protect civilians and aid workers. Israel said the attack was a mistake.
The US president, a lifelong supporter of Israel, has resisted pressure to withhold aid or halt the shipment of weapons to the country. His warning marked the first time he has threatened to potentially condition aid, a development that could change the dynamic of the nearly six-month-old war.
Biden "made clear the need for Israel to announce and implement a series of specific, concrete, and measurable steps to address civilian harm, humanitarian suffering, and the safety of aid workers," the White House said of the leaders' phone call. It said the call lasted about 30 minutes.
The President "made clear that U.S. policy with respect to Gaza will be determined by our assessment of Israel’s immediate action on these steps," the White House said in a statement. Washington is Israel's top weapons supplier and the Biden administration has mostly provided a diplomatic shield for it at the United Nations.
At a briefing after the call, White House spokesperson John Kirby declined to elaborate on any specific changes the US would make in its policy toward Israel and Gaza. He said Washington hoped to see an announcement of Israeli steps in the "coming hours and days."
By suggesting a shift in US policy toward Gaza was possible if Israel did not address the humanitarian situation in the Palestinian enclave, Biden channeled his own frustration along with mounting pressure from his left-leaning political base in the Democratic Party to stop the killings and alleviate hunger among innocent civilians.
Asked about possible changes in US policy, Netanyahu spokesperson Tal Heinrich told Fox News: "I think it's something that Washington will have to explain".
On Monday, Israel launched an attack that killed seven workers with the World Central Kitchen group, founded by celebrity chef Jose Andres. Andres told Reuters in an interview on Wednesday that the Israeli attack had targeted his aid workers "systematically, car by car."
The White House had described Biden as outraged and heartbroken by the attack but, prior to Thursday's call, the president had made no fundamental change in Washington's steadfast support for Israel in its conflict against Palestinian Hamas militants. During the call, Biden "underscored that an immediate ceasefire is essential to stabilize and improve the humanitarian situation and protect innocent civilians," the White House said.
Biden urged Netanyahu to empower his negotiators to conclude a deal to bring home hostages captured by Hamas in its deadly October 7 attack that triggered the Israeli offensive, it added.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by DNA staff and is published from Reuters)
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 "'Protect civilians in Gaza or...': US President Joe Biden issues stark warning to Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu")
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