Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says that President Joe Biden is making a mistake delaying a shipment of bombs to his country to help fight their war against Hamas.
The president, last week, delayed the delivery of 3,500 bombs to the U.S.’s Middle East ally. It was the first time he used his executive power to influence Israel’s approach to its war.
Speaking to Dr. Phil on his primetime talk show Thursday, Netanyahu is clearly not happy with the president’s actions.
‘I’ve known Joe Biden for many years, 40 years and more. We often had our agreements, but we’ve had our disagreements. We’ve been able to overcome them. I hope we can overcome them now,’ Netanyahu said.
Biden on Wednesday said U.S. bombs have been used to kill civilians in Rafah and that he would pause more arms shipments to Israel if Netanyahu launches a full-scale invasion.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says that President Joe Biden is making a mistake delaying a shipment of bombs to his country to help fight their war against Hamas
The president, last week, delayed the delivery of 3,500 bombs to the U.S.’s Middle East ally. It was the first time he used his executive power to influence Israel’s approach to its war
However, Netanyahu remains committed to doing what he believes is best to win this war and issued a chilling warning.
‘We will do what we have to do to protect our country, and that means to protect our future. And that means we will defeat Hamas, including in Rafah. We have no other choice,’ he added.
Despite the pause, Biden reiterated his support for Israel in his interview with Erin Burnett.
‘We’re going to continue to make sure Israel is secure in terms of Iron Dome and their ability to respond to attacks like the one came out at least recently. But it’s just wrong. We’re not gonna – we’re not gonna supply the weapons and artillery shells used,’ he said.
He noted Israel has not launched a full-scale invasion yet – just crossed the border – but express frustration the invasion has cut off a crucial supply line via Egypt to bring in much-humanitarian aid to the Palestinian refugees in Gaza.
‘They haven’t gotten in the population centers – what they did is right on the border and it’s causing problems with – right now – in terms of Egypt, which I’ve worked very hard make sure we have a relationship and help but I’ve made it clear to Bibi and the war cabinet – they’re not going to get our support if, in fact, they go into these population centers,’ he said.
Asked if Netanyahu has crossed the red line yet, Biden said: ‘Not yet but we’ve held up the weapons. We’ve helped up one shipment. It was an old shipment. We held that up.’
He also shared the advice he gave Netanyahu when he visited the prime minister in the days after the October 7th attack by Hamas.
Netanyahu remains committed to doing what he believes is best to win this war
President Biden said the U.S. would not supply the bombs to help Israel invade Rafah
‘Immediately after that happened I said to Bibi don’t make the same mistake we made in America – we want to get Bin Laden and will help you get similar. But we went into Afghanistan which made sense to go get Bin Laden but it made no sense to try and unify Afghanistan,’ he said.’
‘I will help you focus on getting the bad guys but we’ve got to think through what is happening after Gaza. After this is over.’
Israel has downplayed the administration’s decision to withhold the 1,800 2,000-pound and 1,700 500-pound bombs.
The administration also is reviewing whether to hold back future transfers, including guidance kits that convert so-called dumb bombs into precision-guided munitions, according to reports.
Many Democrats have urged the president to limit arms shipments to Israel out of concern they will be used against innocent civilians.
Israel heavily relies on the U.S. to stock its military. Many of the drones used last month to ward off Iranian missiles were American-made and U.S. forces helped counter the bombing.
Biden’s decision comes as he has struggled to balance his support for Israel after the October 7th attack by Hamas with his efforts to protect the civilian population of Palestine.
About a million refugees have crowded into Rafah. Biden on Monday warned Netanyahu against a full-scale assault of Rafah.
Many Democrats have urged the president to limit arms shipments to Israel out of concern they will be used against innocent civilians
Israel heavily relies on the U.S. to stock its military. Many of the drones used last month to ward off Iranian missiles were American-made and U.S. forces helped counter the bombing
But, on Monday, Israel’s military warned about 110,000 civilians to leave Rafah, and hours later its tanks moved in. It was not a full-scale invasion but some worry that one is imminent.
Israel has threatened a major assault on area to defeat thousands of Hamas fighters it says are holed up there.
Biden and Netanyahu’s relationship has gotten more tense as the prime minister has repeatedly defied U.S. demands on major issues.
The move on Biden’s part to pause bombs has drawn bipartisan criticism.
Sen. Chris Coons, a Democrat from Delaware, is a top surrogate for Biden on the global stage. His public break from Biden’s policy is nearly unprecedented.
Coons recounted a call last night with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on the Senate floor on Thursday.
‘You don’t just have right to defend the Israeli people against Hamas, you have the obligation,’ Coons said he told Netanyahu. ‘You have go after them. You have to finish the job. You have to go into Rafah.’
Speaker Mike Johnson called the move a ‘betrayal’ after he agreed to risk his job and put a $95 billion foreign aid package on the House floor that included $26 billion for Israel.
That package passed only after six months of delay as both sides of the aisle could not come together on Ukraine aid or border security provisions.
Sen. Tom Cotton demanded the House impeach President Joe Biden.
‘Some people say Joe Biden is doing this for his reelection, which would be bad enough,’ the Arkansas Republican said. ‘It would also, I have to add, be grounds for impeachment.
