U.S. President Joe Biden welcomed the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas on Thursday after he spoke with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel and other leaders in the region.
“Prime Minister Netanyahu informed me that Israel has agreed to a mutual unconditional ceasefire to begin in less than two hours,”Mr Biden said at just past 6 p.m. local time during remarks he delivered at the White House.
Mr Biden said that the Egyptians had also informed the U.S. that Hamas and other groups in Palestine were also on board with the decision.
Just a day earlier, Mr Biden had told Mr Netanyahu that he “expected a significant de-escalation today on the path to a ceasefire,” according to administration officials.
Earlier in the day Mr Biden said he had spoken with President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi of Egypt and that the Egyptians had played a “critical role” in ending of hostilities.
Mr Biden had come under growing pressure – including from fellow Democrats and from abroad – to push for a ceasefire in the region. France had circulated a draft ceasefire resolution at the United Nations Security Council on Wednesday, despite the U.S. blocking, three times, statements from the Council over the preceding days.
During Thursday’s remarks, Mr Biden said he “commended” Mr Netanyahu for bringing the current hostilities to an end within 11 days and that the U.S. backs Israel’s “right to defend itself against indiscriminate rocket attacks from Hamas and other Gaza-based terrorist groups” that have killed Israeli citizens.
Mr Biden also said he had promised Mr Netanyahu that the U.S. would support the replenishment of Israel’s Iron Dome anti-missile defence system which the two countries had developed.
The President, who said he had spoken six times to Mr Netanyahu over the 11 days of the conflict, said he also spoke with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas as part of the U.S.’s “intense diplomatic engagement.”
Mr Biden said that there had literally been “hour by hour” discussions with countries in the region, including with Egypt, with the aim of avoiding extended conflicts as in previous years.
Condoling the death of civilians on both sides, Mr Biden said the U.S. was committed to working with the United Nations and other international stakeholders to “provide rapid humanitarian assistance and to marshal international support for the people of Gaza” and the Gaza reconstruction efforts.
“We will do this in full partnership with the Palestinian Authority - not Hamas, but Authority - in a manner that does not permit Hamas to simply restock its military arsenal,” Mr Biden said.
“I believe the Palestinians and Israelis equally deserve to live safely and securely and enjoy equal measures of freedom, prosperity, and democracy,” he said.
