A US website has reported that President Joe Biden issued a final warning to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, threatening to halt aid to Israel if it does not alter its approach in the Gaza conflict. According to the site, which cited three informed individuals, President Biden delivered this ultimatum to Prime Minister Netanyahu during a phone call on Thursday, stating that if Israel does not change its course in Gaza, “we will no longer be able to assist you.”
Axios pointed out that Biden did not specify what losing American support would entail, nor did he mention the possibility of stopping the delivery of weapons to Israel.
The sources described the conversation as the “toughest” in terms of tone and content since October 7th between Biden and Netanyahu. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Friday that Netanyahu informed Biden that Israel had agreed, following an attack on volunteers at the Global Central Kitchen in Gaza, to modify its warfare methods to protect humanitarian workers assisting Palestinian civilians.
On Friday, the United Nations Human Rights Council adopted a resolution calling for Israel to be held accountable for potential war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza, despite Israel’s rejection of the resolution as a “distorted text.”
For the past six months, the Israeli military has continued to bombard Gaza, destroying entire neighborhoods, displacing 1.7 million out of 2.4 million residents, and causing a catastrophic humanitarian crisis, according to the United Nations.
On October 7th, Hamas fighters launched an attack on southern Israel, killing 1,200 Israelis, according to official Israeli figures. In response to the Hamas attack, Israel vowed to “eliminate” the movement and launched a major offensive on Gaza, which has resulted in the deaths of more than 33,000 Palestinians, the vast majority being women and children, according to the Gaza Health Ministry.
