Biden tells Netanyahu U.S. supports ceasefire as Israel, Hamas tensions escalate

WASHINGTON – President Joe Biden in a Monday afternoon call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu expressed his support for a ceasefire as fighting between Israel and Hamas enters a second week.

“The President reiterated his firm support for Israel’s right to defend itself against indiscriminate rocket attacks. The President welcomed efforts to address intercommunal violence and to bring calm to Jerusalem, ” according to a White House readout of the call.

Biden also called on Israel to ensure the protection of innocent civilians amid the conflict.

“The two leaders discussed progress in Israel’s military operations against Hamas and other terrorist groups in Gaza,” the statement added. Biden also discussed engaging with other partners and allies in the region in order to help de-escalate tensions.

Violence intensified over the weekend, with Israel conducting an airstrike Sunday that leveled several homes in the Gaza Strip. The strike, the deadliest yet in the ongoing conflict, killed at least 42 people. Meanwhile, more than 3,000 rockets bombarded Israeli cities.

On Sunday, Netanyahu defended the punishing airstrike on Saturday that collapsed a 12-story building housing international media, citing intelligence that Hamas was using a portion of the building to plan terror attacks.

Netanyahu said that the building’s occupants, which included the Associated Press, broadcaster Al-Jazeera and other media agencies, were given an hour’s notice to evacuate before the strike.

“Here’s the intelligence we had,” Netanyahu told CBS Sunday program “Face the Nation.”

″[It’s] an intelligence office for the Palestinian terrorist organization housed in that building that plots and organizes the terror attacks against Israeli civilians. So, it’s a perfectly legitimate target,” he explained.

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