As the death toll rises, the US calls on Israel to halt its offensive in Gaza

Washington: President Joe Biden urged Israel to take more precautions to avoid civilian life in Gaza as the United States instructed it to reduce its attack on Hamas in the “near future.”

During discussions on Israel’s war following the October 7 assaults with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other top officials in Tel Aviv, US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan made the appeal.

Though escalating civilian fatalities in the Palestinian area have generated a growing breach between the close friends, Washington has steadfastly supported Israel’s right to defend itself.

Following a visit to a medical research facility outside Washington, Biden told reporters, “I want them to be focused on how to save civilian lives — not stop going after Hamas, but be more careful.”

The White House had originally claimed that after hearing from Israel’s defense minister that the fight would take many more months, Sullivan, Biden’s senior national security advisor, had pressed Israel over the timing of the war.

The company “did talk about possible transitioning from what we would call high-intensity operations, which is what we’re seeing them do now, to lower-intensity operations sometime soon,” said John Kirby, a spokesperson for the company.

“But I don’t want to put a time stamp on it.”

Although Kirby said that Washington was “not dictating terms” to Israel, Sullivan had raised “hard questions” over the offensive’s trajectory while the nation was still receiving support.

The battle “could end today” if Hamas capitulated, Kirby told reporters, adding that “that doesn’t look likely right now.” “I think we all want it to end as soon as possible,” Kirby said.

“Demolish them.”

Sullivan had spoken about “creating conditions for shifts over time from high-intensity clearing operations to lower-intensity surgical operations against Hamas remnants,” according to a subsequent statement from the White House.

Israel’s battle with Hamas “will require a period of time — it will last more than several months, but we will win and we will destroy them,” Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant had cautioned Sullivan.

Following reports in US media that Washington had pressed Israel to conclude the first phase before the end of the year, a senior US official declined to disclose specifics of a schedule.

According to the source, Sullivan will meet with representatives of the Palestinian Authority on Friday in the Israeli-occupied West Bank city of Ramallah.

“Days are numbered” for Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, the US source said.

The official claimed, “He has American blood on his hands,” but he remained anonymous. “It doesn’t matter how long, justice will be served.”

According to the White House, Sullivan traveled to Saudi Arabia on Wednesday to have discussions with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the nation’s de facto ruler.

Tuesday saw Biden criticize Israel in his harshest manner to yet, stating that the nation runs the danger of losing support from across the world due to its “indiscriminate bombing” of Gaza.

The fight against Hamas will go on “with or without international support,” Foreign Minister Eli Cohen said, while a furious Netanyahu promised to continue “until victory.”

Three months into the conflict, it started with the Palestinian group’s historic October 7 strikes on Israel, which according to Israeli sources claimed 1,200 lives, the majority of them civilians.
Israel responded by vowing to destroy Hamas and by waging an unremitting military campaign that has destroyed large portions of Gaza. 18,787 individuals have died in the Hamas-controlled area, mostly women and children, according to the health ministry.