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'Come to Jesus': Biden concerned over Gaza deaths, avers Netanyahu doing ‘more harm than good to Israel’
Joe Biden expressed profound concerns over the deaths of civilians in Gaza, claiming that Netanyahu was doing “more harm than good to Israel and its interests”.
Amid escalating tensions between White House and Benjamin Netanyahu, US President Joe Biden slammed the Israeli PM's approach of handling the Gaza crisis, stating that he is "hurting Israel'' by not putting efforts to save Palestinian citizens.
During an interview with MSNBC’s Jonathan Capeharton on Saturday, Biden admitted to having an awkward hot-mic moment following the State of the Union address. He was caught telling Sen. Michael Bennet (D-Colo.) that he told Netanyahu that they were going to have a "come to Jesus" meeting, asking the lawmaker to keep the information private.
Speaking about the same, the POTUS told MSNBC: “It’s an expression used in the southern part of my state meaning ‘a serious meeting. I’ve known Bibi (Netanyahu) for 50 years, and he knew what I meant by it."
“I told him, ‘Bibi’ — and don’t repeat this, but [I said] ‘You and I are going to have a come to Jesus—’,” Biden said. Soon, his aide ran over to prevent him from saying anything else.
"I'm on a hot mic here," Biden declared aloud after the aide whispered in his ear. "Good. That was good," he added sarcastically.
Netanyahu ‘doing more harm than good to Israel’, says Biden
In the hard-hitting interview, the US President expressed profound concerns over the deaths of civilians in Gaza, claiming that Netanyahu was doing "more harm than good to Israel and its interests", and described the IDF operation in southern Gaza's Rafah as a "red line."
Stressing that Israel has “a right to continue to pursue Hamas”, Biden urged Netanyahu to pay more attention to innocent civilians caught in the crossfire.
The MSNBC interviewer asked Biden if he would be ready to revisit Israel and address the Knesset. “Yes”, the President replied without providing any further details about it.
He, however, maintained that the Israeli PM is “hurting Israel more than helping Israel.”
Also Read: Joe Biden says he ‘hopes’ for ceasefire in Israel-Hamas conflict by ‘next Monday’: ‘We’re close’
On being asked about Israel-Hamas truce talks and his post war plans, Biden said he is hoping to secure at least a six-week ceasefire by Ramadan, a holiest month for Muslims around the world that lasts for 20 or 30 days. It is expected to begin on 11 March and end on 9 April this year.
Biden revealed that he was holding discussions with Arab leaders about the ceasefire, adding that they are “prepared to fully recognise Israel [and] begin to rebuild the region.”
The US President further lamented Israel over the Gaza death toll and said, “It’s contrary to what Israel stands for. And I think it’s a big mistake.”
Hamas' October 7 attack on Israel claimed at least 1,200 innocent Israelis. Following this, Israel launched war on Hamas, killing nearly 30,000 Palestinians.
