Biden says Netanyahu making ‘mistake’ on Gaza

WASHINGTON: US President Joe Biden said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Gaza policy was a “mistake” and urged Israel to call for a ceasefire, in an interview aired Tuesday.
Biden’s comments were some of his strongest criticism yet of Netanyahu amid growing tensions over the civilian death toll from Israel’s war on Hamas and dire conditions inside Gaza.
“I think what he’s doing is a mistake. I don’t agree with his approach,” Biden told Univision, a US Spanish-language TV network, when asked about Netanyahu’s handling of the war.
Biden reiterated that an Israeli drone attack last week that killed seven aid workers from a US-based charity in Gaza — and sparked a tense phone call with Netanyahu — was “outrageous.”
“So I what I’m calling for is for the Israelis to just call for a ceasefire, allow for the next six, eight weeks, total access to all food and medicine going into the country,” added Biden.
His remarks on a ceasefire marked a shift from his previous comments, in which he has said the burden lies with Hamas to agree to a truce and hostage release deal.
Biden also stepped up pressure on Israel to let more aid into devastated Gaza, saying he had spoken with Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Egypt and they were “prepared to move this food in.”
“There’s no excuse to not provide for the medical and the food needs of those people. It should be done now,” he added.
The Biden interview underlined the dramatic shift his Israel policy since Israel’s killings of the World Central Kitchen aid workers in Gaza sparked global outrage.