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US president Joe Biden has called for a “pause” in fighting between Israel and Hamas in order to help free hostages held in Gaza, as the Israeli military stepped up its ground offensive in the blockaded enclave.
The Israel Defense Forces struck the crowded Jabalia refugee camp on Wednesday, saying it had targeted a high-ranking Hamas commander there. Palestinian health authorities said the two strikes on the camp in northern Gaza this week had killed almost 200 people.
“Our forces broke through the forward Hamas perimeter in the northern Gaza Strip,” Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari, a spokesperson for the military, said on Wednesday night.
Speaking at an event in Minnesota on Wednesday, Biden was interrupted by a member of the audience who urged him to back a ceasefire in the Middle Eastern conflict. “I think we need a pause,” the president said. “A pause means give time to get the prisoners out.”
Biden’s comments did not represent a call for a full ceasefire, which the White House has resisted since the war between Israel and Hamas began three weeks ago. But US officials have said in recent days they would consider supporting a temporary halt in hostilities if it were limited to helping humanitarian efforts.
A small number of aid trucks have been allowed into Gaza since the beginning of the war. Biden has repeatedly asked the Israelis to facilitate more aid, saying on Wednesday that the relief efforts “had a long way to go”.
The Israeli government has said the humanitarian situation in Gaza remains manageable, though the UN and others report widespread shortages of food, clean water and medicine.
Biden added that he understood the “emotion” the conflict was eliciting on all sides. “This is incredibly complicated for the Israelis. It’s incredibly complicated for the Muslim world as well,” he said. “I supported a two-state solution, I have from the very beginning.”
More foreign nationals and some wounded Palestinians are expected to be allowed out of the Rafah crossing on Gaza’s border with Egypt, western diplomats said. Just under 400 were allowed out on Wednesday, while more aid trucks were permitted to enter. Hamas’s proposed exit list on Thursday had the names of 1,000 foreign nationals on it.
Biden’s remarks follow mounting international concern about high civilian casualties and the deterioration of living conditions resulting from Israel’s bombing campaign against Gaza as it tries to quash Hamas, the group responsible for the deadly October 7 attack on Israel.
While backing Israel’s right to defend itself, Biden has urged the unity government led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to minimise the toll on civilians in its response and remain within the bounds of humanitarian law and the rules of international conflict.
The president’s willingness to consider backing a pause in the conflict comes as US secretary of state Antony Blinken plans a visit to the Middle East, starting with Israel, this week for a new round of diplomatic talks on the conflict.
Hamas’s attack on Israel killed approximately 1,400 people, according to Israeli officials, who add that 15 Israeli soldiers have been killed since its forces began their ground offensive in Gaza.
Israel’s bombardment has killed at least 8,800 people in Gaza and injured about 22,240, according to Palestinian officials. Israel has also severely restricted supplies of electricity, water, fuel and food to Gaza, prompting UN officials to warn of a human catastrophe in the enclave.
In protest at the civilian death toll, Jordan, Colombia and Chile have recalled their ambassadors to Israel, while Bolivia has severed diplomatic relations with Israel altogether.
Emily Foster is a globe-trotting journalist based in the UK. Her articles offer readers a global perspective on international events, exploring complex geopolitical issues and providing a nuanced view of the world’s most pressing challenges.
