On Wednesday, US President Joe Biden called on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to find a diplomatic solution to the conflict in Lebanon and minimize civilian casualties during Israeli strikes on Hezbollah, although previous calls for restraint from the United States went unanswered. This is reported by the Financial Times, according to UNN.
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The U.S. President and Israeli Prime Minister spoke for the first time in two months following a new spike in tensions between the two allies, exacerbated by a misunderstanding over Israel's approach to the expanding conflict in the Middle East.
The conversation, which the White House characterized as “direct” and “productive,” comes as U.S. officials are trying to limit Israel's response to Iran's missile strike on the country last week and contain its ground offensive in southern Lebanon.
However, there are widespread doubts about Biden's influence on Netanyahu after the Israeli prime minister has repeatedly ignored Washington's requests for more limited military operations and more active diplomatic engagement since the start of the Gaza war in October 2023, the Financial Times writes.
These fears have intensified in recent weeks as the Israeli military has sharply stepped up its strikes against Hezbollah in Lebanon, in direct defiance of Biden's calls for a ceasefire in the region at the UN General Assembly in New York last month.
According to a White House statement, in his conversation with Netanyahu on Wednesday, Biden did not call on Israel to cease all military operations in Lebanon. But he did tell the prime minister that a “diplomatic agreement” is needed to allow Lebanese and Israeli civilians to return to their homes on both sides of the Blue Line, the de facto border between the two countries. He also called on Israel to “minimize harm to civilians” in Lebanon, especially in the capital Beirut.
The White House did not say whether the two leaders discussed Israel's future response to Iran, although the US president warned the Israelis against strikes on nuclear facilities and energy infrastructure.
But although Biden and other senior U.S. officials were repeatedly irritated and even outraged by Netanyahu's unwillingness to heed their advice, they were unwilling to make any major changes to U.S. policy to increase pressure on Israel, such as imposing an arms embargo.
In recent weeks, U.S. officials have acknowledged that Israel has made what they consider to be tactical gains in the fight against Hezbollah in Lebanon after killing its leader, Hassan Nasrallah, and significantly damaging the group's ability to strike Israel.
But Washington also warns Israel against getting too carried away, insisting that it needs to return to the armistice.