White House affirms Biden's commitment to 2-state solution amid Netanyahu's opposition

By Servet Gunerigok

WASHINGTON (AA) - The White House reiterated President Joe Biden's commitment to a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict Thursday after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he is against a Palestinian state.

"Nothing has changed about President Biden's desire that a two-state solution is really in the best interest of not only the Israeli people but of course, the Palestinian people," National Security Council's spokesman John Kirby told reporters aboard Air Force One. "In fact, it's the best interest of the region."

Kirby said the US will not stop working toward that goal.

"And this is this is not a new comment by Prime Minister Netanyahu. We obviously see it differently. We believe that the Palestinians have every right to live in an independent state with peace and security," said Kirby.

The spokesman said the US is currently focused on ensuring that Israel has the necessary support to defend itself against Hamas and that humanitarian aid assistance continues to reach the desperate people in Gaza.

"But there's going to be a post-conflict Gaza. And we have been exceedingly clear about what we want to see that look like. We want governance in Gaza that's representative of the aspirations of the Palestinian people. That they have a vote and a voice and ... that there's no reoccupation of Gaza," Kirby added.

Netanyahu said earlier he told the US that he opposes the establishment of a Palestinian state as part of any postwar scenario.

The Israeli prime minister pledged to continue a military campaign until Israel achieves a decisive victory against Hamas, something many analysts have said is impossible.

Israel has launched relentless air and ground attacks on the Gaza Strip since a cross-border attack by Hamas, which Tel Aviv said killed 1,200 people.

About 25,000 Palestinians have since been killed in the Israeli response, mostly women and children, and 62,000 injured, according to Palestinian health authorities.

The Israeli offensive has left 85% of Gaza’s population internally displaced amid acute shortages of food, clean water and medicine, while 60% of the enclave’s infrastructure was damaged or destroyed, according to the UN.