(New York Times) Peter Baker - During President Biden's phone call with Prime Minister Netanyahu on Thursday, he outlined several specific commitments he wanted Israel to make to avoid losing his support for the war against Hamas. According to people informed about the call, Netanyahu promised he would announce more humanitarian aid for Gaza within hours and signaled that he would respond to Biden's other demands in days to come. The Israeli government followed through later that night, authorizing the opening of a key port and another land crossing for food and other supplies. Israel is expected to soon issue new military procedures to avoid killing civilians and relief workers. The Israelis "have moved on some of the very specific requests that the president made," said White House national security spokesman John Kirby. Administration officials insisted that the president was "very strident" in making his points to Netanyahu. At the same time, officials said, Biden did not specifically threaten to limit or cut off U.S. arms supplies during the call, nor did he set a deadline for Israeli action.
2024-04-07 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive