President Joe Biden reportedly called Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a “bastard” in at least three recent incidents, a person familiar with the president's comments said, as tensions between the two leaders escalate. three people told NBC News.
As the Israel-Hamas war intensifies in the Middle East, Biden is reportedly “venting frustration” with aides and campaign officials about how Israel has carried out attacks in the Gaza Strip, the president said. Five people with direct knowledge of the comments said: Said NBC News reports Monday. The president is reportedly pushing for a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war, but Netanyahu is giving Biden “hell,” a person familiar with the comments told NBC News.
“He just feels that enough is enough,” one of the people said of the views Biden expressed to NBC News. “That has to stop.”
Biden reportedly vented some of his frustration at a January fundraiser after thanking donors for standing up to anti-Semitism and supporting Israel. a supporter in attendance told NBC News.
“He said Bibi had a great start, but it was one of those things like, 'He's been bothering me lately,' or 'He's been killing me lately,'” Biden said. the person told NBC News. “But he's been acting awful lately.”
A spokesperson for the National Security Council told NBC News that the two world leaders have a “respectful relationship.”
“While the president has made clear his differences with Prime Minister Netanyahu, this is a decades-long relationship that is respectful both publicly and privately,” the spokesperson told the outlet.
Participants in the New York protests welcomed Prime Minister Netanyahu to a meeting with President Biden, demanding democracy and chanting “shame!” In New York City on September 20, 2023. (Photo by Craig Barritt/Getty Images for New York Protest Movement)
Biden and his administration have pledged support for Israel since Hamas launched a terrorist attack on the country on October 7, but the president's pro-Israel stance has sparked backlash from within his campaign and administration. is recieving. (Related: Intern Rebellion: White House henchmen stoke division over Biden's foreign policy)
A coalition of State Department employees signed a letter in November calling on the president to call for a ceasefire in the conflict. Seventeen anonymous staffers from Biden's re-election campaign petitioned the president to cut unconditional military aid to Israel, claiming Biden was complicit in genocide, according to an anonymous letter first obtained by Politico. reportedly asked for it.
“It’s not enough to simply be an alternative to Donald Trump. Campaigns need to change the emotions deep in the stomachs of voters. “The only way to do that is to call for a ceasefire,” the letter said.
As concerns grow within Biden's camp about his pro-Israel stance, the president's tone on Israel has begun to change slightly. The president recently said Israel's “conducting response in the Gaza Strip” was “overreach,” but the White House quickly clarified that Biden was referring to the country's military operations in Gaza. . Axios report.biden It was also said that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu insisted in a telephone conversation on Sunday that Israel should refrain from a ground attack on the southern Gaza city of Rafah “without a credible and viable plan.”
“[The president’s] The position has not changed. I don't think his message has changed.we don't think his message is [changed]. He doesn't think his message has changed,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters at a press briefing on Friday.
