[ad_1]
(Reuters) – U.S. President Joe Biden again told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday that he should not take military action in Rafah without a credible and executable plan to protect Palestinian civilians, the White House said.
The call between the two leaders on Thursday was the second time in less than a week that Biden warned Netanyahu about leaving without a plan to ensure the safety of the nearly 1 million people sheltering in the southern part of the Gaza Strip .
He also talked about the ongoing negotiations regarding the hostages, and according to a White House readout of the call, Biden promised to continue working around the clock to help free the hostages who have surrendered to Hamas. Spent 132 days in captivity.
war in israel and gaza
Israeli forces said Thursday they have raided the largest functioning hospital in Gaza, an incursion that has raised fresh concerns over the fate of hundreds of patients and medical staff and many displaced Palestinians seeking refuge there from the war.
The fighting at the hospital comes as Israel faces growing international pressure to show restraint after vowing to press its offensive into Rafah, the last relatively safe haven in Gaza.
Earlier this month, Biden said Israel’s military response in the Gaza Strip was “over the top” and expressed grave concern over the rising number of civilian deaths in the Palestinian territory.
The war began on October 7 when Iran-backed Hamas sent fighters into Israel, killing 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and capturing 253 hostages, according to Israeli figures.
Israel’s air and ground offensive has devastated tiny, overcrowded Gaza, killing 28,663 people, mostly civilians, and forcing nearly all of its more than 2 million residents to flee their homes, according to health officials. Have been forced to.
(Reporting by Rami Ayoub and Jarrett Renshaw; Editing by Chris Reese and Stephen Coates)
Copyright 2024 Thomson Reuters,
[ad_2]
Source link