In an interview broadcast on Tuesday, President Joe Biden demanded that Israel agree to a unilateral six-to-eight week ceasefire in Gaza – without insisting on the release of hostages or even that Hamas shouldn’t attack Israel during that time.
“What I’m calling for is for the Israelis to just call for a ceasefire, allow for the next six, eight weeks, total access to all food and medicine going into the country,” Biden told Univision, a US Spanish-language TV network.
“I’ve spoken with everyone from the Saudis to the Jordanians to the Egyptians. They’re prepared to move in,” Biden added. “They’re prepared to move this food in. And I think there’s no excuse to not provide for the medical and the food needs of those people. It should be done now.”
The interview was taped last Wednesday, just two days after an Israeli airstrike mistakenly killed three aid workers. In the leadup to the interview being aired, Biden administration officials appeared to backtrack from the president’s comments – saying that it Hamas, not Israel, that is preventing a ceasefire from going into effect.
“There could be a ceasefire in place today that would extend for several weeks to be built upon longer if Hamas would be prepared to release some of those people, so let’s train the attention where it belongs… I believe Israel is ready and Hamas should step up to the table and be prepared to do so as well,” National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said.
He added that Hamas “has an opportunity now to agree to the proposal on a ceasefire and hostages. The ball is in Hamas’s court. The world is watching to see what it does.”
1 comment:
As much as I hate our enemies, I despise a turncoat, those who "had our back" on October 7 and stab it today. May they go down with our avowed enemies.
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