US President Joe Biden and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held a phone call Monday during which the American leader demanded clarifications regarding the Israeli upcoming incursion into Rafah amid reports that the IDF had ordered residents in the city to evacuate.
The two spoke for about half an hour in what was described as a difficult conversation. According to reports, the US President demanded that the Prime Minister urgently open the crossings to allow humanitarian aid to enter.
In Israel, they were expecting a tough conversation between the two against the backdrop of Biden's previous opposition to the IDF's move on the city. A diplomatic source said there is a real concern that Biden "will throw Israel under the bus for domestic political considerations in the US."
According to the source, "The Biden administration says it is committed to eliminating Hamas, but in practice it is pressing to avoid action in the last major stronghold of the terrorist organization, against the backdrop of elections there. But the Americans need to understand that the factor that wants to delay Rafah is Iran, for whom keeping Hamas on its feet is in its interest."
The diplomatic source added that "we are at a critical moment in the campaign. If the Americans turn their backs on Israel, the implications for the entire region will be severe. The initiation of the operation in Rafah is the only leverage that could cause Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar to agree to a prisoner exchange deal, which is the only way to reach a larger deal with Saudi Arabia."
The Israeli source revealed that the decision to press further in Rafah was unanimously approved by the Cabinet last night, after all its members agreed that the chances of a deal are currently non-existent.
