Biden tells Netanyahu Rafah offensive 'should not proceed' without plan for civilians

By Michael Hernandez

WASHINGTON (AA) - US President Joe Biden told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that his vowed offensive on southern Gaza's city of Rafah should not proceed without a plan for the over 1 million Palestinian civilians seeking refuge there, the White House said Thursday.

During their call, Biden "raised the situation in Rafah and reiterated his view that a military operation should not proceed without a credible and executable plan for ensuring the safety of and support for the civilians in Rafah," it said in a statement.

"The President and the Prime Minister also discussed the situation in Gaza, and the urgency of ensuring that humanitarian assistance is able to get to Palestinian civilians in desperate need," it added.

Over 1 million Palestinians that were previously displaced by Israel's offensive on the war-torn coastal enclave are holed up in Rafah, seeking refuge from hostilities that have laid waste to wide swathes of Palestinian territory.

The White House on Tuesday confirmed that Israel has been blocking the delivery of a US-funded shipment of flour to Gaza. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan told reporters that the shipment "has not moved the way that we had expected it would move."

"We expect that Israel will follow through on its commitment to get that flour into Gaza," he said.

The White House said Biden and Netanyahu also discussed ongoing negotiations to secure the release of over 100 hostages still held by the Palestinian group Hamas in exchange for an extended halt to the hostilities in Gaza.

"The President reaffirmed his commitment to working tirelessly to support the release of all hostages as soon as possible, recognizing their appalling situation after 132 days in Hamas captivity," it said.

Since a cross-border incursion by Hamas on Oct. 7 that killed some 1,200 people, the Israeli offensive into Gaza has killed more than 28,600 people and caused mass destruction and shortages of necessities.

The Israeli war has pushed 85% of the territory's population into internal displacement amid acute shortages of food, clean water and medicine, while 60% of the enclave's infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed, according to the UN.

Israel is accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice. An interim ruling in January ordered Tel Aviv to stop genocidal acts and to take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.