Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected Joe Biden’s plea to halt a planned ground attack on Rafah, the last shelter in Gaza for more than a million displaced Palestinians, where Israel says Hamas fighters are holed up.
Netanyahu told MPs on Tuesday that he had made it “supremely clear” to the US president that “we are determined to complete the elimination of these battalions in Rafah, and there is no other way to do that than by going in on the ground.”
The two leaders spoke via phone on Monday. White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan stated that Washington considered a ground attack on Rafah would be a “mistake” and that Israel could achieve its military objectives through other means.Washington has launched a new diplomatic drive for a cease-fire in the almost six-month-old battle to liberate prisoners and send food aid to prevent starvation.
