Biden Campaign and White House Deny Change in Support For Israel After President Suggests Need to End to War in Gaza

AP Photo/Andrew Harnik

President Joe Biden suggested that Israel’s ongoing military campaign in Gaza is giving Hamas what it wants in comments that could signal a notable shift for his administration – at least rhetorically.

“Hamas unleashed a terrorist attack because they fear nothing more than Israelis and Palestinians living side by side in peace,” he tweeted on Tuesday evening. “To continue down the path of terror, violence, killing, and war is to give Hamas what they seek.”

On Oct. 7, Hamas launched terrorist attacks inside Israel, killing 1,200 people and abducting more than 200. Israel invaded Hamas-controlled Gaza after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the campaign will continue until Hamas is eliminated. Meanwhile, nearly 15,000 Gazans have been killed by Israeli strikes, according to the Ministry of Health in Gaza. Israeli officials claim this number is unreliable because the ministry is controlled by Hamas.

As civilian casualties mount in the small territory of 2.3 million people, so has pressure on Israel to end its operation. Israel and Hamas agreed on a pause in hostilities as the former frees some of the hostages and the latter releases Palestinians who have been detained – some of whom have not been charged with crimes.

Biden has also faced growing criticism from Democrats over his continued support of Netanyahu’s policies and steadfastly refusing to advocate for a ceasefire. His tweet on Tuesday night may be a sign that the president is beginning to feel that pressure.

UPDATE 12:23 p.m.: A Biden campaign spokesperson denied in a post on Twitter that there was any change in policy, and that the administration maintains “support for Israel’s right to defend against Hamas terrorists.”

A senior White House official also told Mediaite that Biden’s “support for Israel and its military campaign against Hamas remains unwavering, and this was not a change in policy. The president continues to strongly believe that Israel has every right to defend itself from an active terrorist threat. We have seen Hamas officials say publicly that they want to try to commit the atrocities of October 7 again and again.”

The official, like the Biden campaign, pointed out that the tweet came from a longer set of remarks on Nov. 24 in which the president expressed support for the goal of eliminating Hamas.