President Biden said Thursday that in the days after the war in Gaza began, he pushed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to prevent civilian deaths and accommodate Palestinian concerns, while maintaining firm U.S. support for Israel.
Biden spoke with MSNBC host Lawrence O’Donnell in his final television interview while in office, during which he also discussed his political career and presidency. The interview, which aired Thursday night, was recorded earlier in the day.
The 15-month war, which began after Hamas carried out a deadly attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, has killed tens of thousands of Palestinians. Most of Gaza’s approximately two million residents have been displaced at least once, and much of the enclave has been destroyed.
Biden and other leaders announced a tentative ceasefire agreement on Wednesday that raised hopes that Israel’s military assault on Gaza will end. Under the agreement to stop the fighting, some hostages held by Hamas in Gaza would be released.
The president and his advisers have struggled for months to negotiate an end to the conflict. Biden, who put the cease-fire deal on the table in May, told MSNBC that he had repeatedly told Netanyahu that he “has to find a way to accommodate the legitimate concerns” of the Palestinians. He called Mr. Netanyahu a friend but said: “We don’t see eye to eye much lately.”
Critics, including some families of hostages who have been pushing for a ceasefire deal, have accused Netanyahu of intentionally blocking negotiations to prolong the conflict. Biden did not respond directly when asked if he thought Netanyahu had done so. He said the Israeli prime minister was subjected to political pressure from the Israeli right, and was at times forced “to do some of the things that, in my opinion, I thought were counterproductive.”
To reach the ceasefire agreement, President-elect Donald J. Trump and Biden ordered their advisers to work together. Biden said in Thursday’s interview that he had had no discussions with Trump about negotiations in the past two weeks.
Biden recalled that the first time he urged Netanyahu to prevent the deaths of civilians was during a visit to Israel, 10 days after the Hamas attack on October 7, 2023. Biden said he told the prime minister that the United The United States would support Israel, but that “you cannot carpet bomb these communities.”
Israel’s bombing campaign has been one of the most intense in 21st century warfare, and the country has at times used inaccurate bombs.
During the interview, Biden defended his steadfast support for Israel throughout the conflict.
“When Iran was thinking of blowing Israel off the map, it had thousands of missiles aimed at it,” he said. “Well, guess what? We didn’t let that happen.”