Biden speaks to Netanyahu, promises 'ironclad' support for Israel | News on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict

Washington, D.C. – US President Joe Biden reiterated his “ironclad” support for Israel during a phone call with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the White House said, as violence escalated in Gaza and Lebanon.

The phone call between the two leaders on Wednesday lasted 30 minutes and was their first publicly announced conversation since August.

The White House said in a statement that Vice President Kamala Harris, who is running to succeed Biden in next month's US presidential election, had joined the call.

“The President reiterated his ironclad commitment to Israel’s security,” the statement continued. “He unequivocally condemned Iran’s ballistic missile attack on Israel on October 1.”

White House spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre had previously described the talks as “direct” and “productive”.

The call comes as Israel considers an attack against Iran in response to the firing of Iranian ballistic missiles that targeted Israeli military sites last week.

Jean-Pierre said Biden and Netanyahu had “discussions” about confronting Iran, without giving further details.

Iran fired a barrage of rockets at Israeli bases last week in what it said was retaliation for the killing of Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran and the killings of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah and an Iranian general in Beirut.

The US government vowed to ensure that Iran faces “serious consequences” for the attack.

Asked after the missile launch whether it would support an Israeli attack on Iranian nuclear facilities, Biden said: “The answer is no.”

The US president also indicated that Washington was against the bombing of Iran's oil fields.

“The Israelis have not yet decided what they will do. This is being discussed,” he told reporters on Friday.

“If I were in their position, I would consider other alternatives than attacking Iranian oil fields.”

Such an attack would send oil prices soaring worldwide, which could prove costly for Harris in the run-up to the November 5 election.

The U.S. has provided Israel with unconditional military and diplomatic support since the war on Gaza began, a policy Harris has vowed to maintain.

While Washington has warned against escalating the war, the Biden administration has endorsed Israel's offensive in Lebanon, which has killed more than 2,000 people and displaced over a million others.

It has also supported Israel's ground invasion of the south of the country.

The White House said Wednesday that Biden emphasized the need for a “diplomatic solution” to the crisis in Lebanon in his phone call with Netanyahu. Biden also expressed concern for Lebanese civilians, the statement said.

“The President reaffirmed Israel's right to protect its citizens from Hezbollah, which has fired thousands of rockets and rockets into Israel in the past year alone, while emphasizing the need to limit the harm to civilians, particularly in the densely populated areas of Beirut. “To keep it as low as possible,” it said.

But on Tuesday, the US State Department indicated that Washington was no longer seeking a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah because the Lebanese group was “falling behind.”

On the same day, Netanyahu warned the Lebanese people that their country would face a “long war that will lead to destruction and suffering like we see in Gaza” if they do not turn against Hezbollah.

Israel has killed more than 42,000 Palestinians in the besieged Palestinian territories, leveled entire neighborhoods and severely restricted humanitarian aid, bringing Gaza to the brink of famine.

U.S. State Department spokesman Matthew Miller warned that “there should be no military action in Lebanon that looks anything like Gaza.”

But parts of southern and eastern Lebanon, as well as the southern Beirut suburb of Dahiyeh, are already experiencing widespread destruction from Israeli bombings.

As the war in Lebanon expands, Israel is pushing ahead with its military operation in the Gaza Strip.

Palestinian rights advocates have accused the Israeli government of waging a campaign of ethnic cleansing in the territory's north by withholding aid and closing centers housing civilians.

On Wednesday, Miller expressed concern about possible abuses in Gaza.

“We have made it clear to the Israeli government that it is obliged under international humanitarian law to bring food and water and other needed humanitarian assistance to all parts of the Gaza Strip, and we fully expect them to comply with these obligations.”, he said.

The U.S. provides Israel with at least $3.8 billion in military aid annually, and the Biden administration has approved $14 billion in additional aid to its ally to help finance the ongoing war.