U.S. President Joe Biden suggested that Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu may be prolonging the war in Gaza for political reasons, in an interview with Time magazine released on Tuesday.
The comments were made on May 28, just days before Biden proposed a ceasefire in Gaza, and as Netanyahu struggles with deep political divisions at home. When asked if he thought Netanyahu was prolonging the war for his own political reasons, Biden said, “There is every reason for people to draw that conclusion.”
Biden has been pushing for an end to the nearly eight-month war, which has killed thousands of people in Gaza and seen thousands more taken hostage by Hamas. Last month, the International Criminal Court’s prosecutor requested arrest warrants for Netanyahu and his defense chief, as well as three Hamas leaders, over alleged war crimes committed during the conflict.
Israel launched an air and ground offensive in Gaza last October, vowing to destroy Hamas after it attacked inside Israel, killing around 1,200 people and taking more than 250 people hostage.
According to Israeli tallies, around 120 hostages remain in Gaza, while the Israeli assault has killed more than 36,000 people in Gaza, according to health authorities there. Thousands more bodies are believed to be buried under rubble, and opinion polls show most Israelis support the war but blame Netanyahu for the security failures that allowed Hamas to attack.
Mass street protests have become weekly events, drawing tens of thousands demanding the government do more to bring home hostages seized by Hamas and calling for Netanyahu to go. Despite this, Netanyahu’s political future remains uncertain, as he struggles to maintain support among his own people and faces international pressure to end the war.
