(The Center Square) — In an interview Sunday, President Joe Biden told Israeli forces not to occupy Gaza.
The comments come as the U.S. sent two aircraft carriers into the region, and Israeli forces prepare for a ground invasion of northern Gaza, which has been bombarded in recent days since the terrorist group, Hamas, killed more than 1,400 Israelis.
“I think it’d be a big mistake,” Biden said in an interview with CBS’ “60 Minutes” when asked about an Israeli occupation of Gaza. “Look, what happened in Gaza, in my view, is Hamas and the extreme elements of Hamas don’t represent all the Palestinian people. And I think that…It would be a mistake to…for Israel to occupy…Gaza again.
“But going in but taking out the extremists the Hezbollah is up north but Hamas down south…is a necessary requirement,” he added.
Gaza residents have been evacuating south after Israel gave advance notice that the northern half of Gaza would not be safe for civilians. While Israel has steadily taken out Hamas targets with aerial attacks, it has not yet begun the larger invasion many expected.
Biden’s comments, and the U.S. position generally, have a major impact on Israel’s decisions, since nearby Arab nations could become involved at any time. Iran, which is a major financial backer of Hamas, could also be involved. The U.S. stance could encourage or deter those nations.
Biden has taken fire from Republicans since the conflict broke out, especially for taxpayer funding sent to Iran in recent years as well as the $6 billion the Biden administration released to Iran just weeks before the Hamas attack.
“Hamas’s terror attack on Israel was paid for by Joe Biden,” Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter. “In the last two and a half years, the Biden admin has allowed $50 billion to flow to Iran and hundreds of millions to Gaza. That money went to fund Hamas’s genocidal terrorism against Israel and terrorist groups globally.”
The Biden administration has said that the recently released $6 billion has not been spent yet. After ongoing criticism and calls from lawmakers, the U.S. and Qatar agreed to block the U.S. from accessing that money, which had been previously frozen by U.S. sanctions.
In the CBS interview, Biden went on to say he wants to eventually find a two-state solution between Israel and Palestine, though he admitted Israel would “not now” be interested in that since Israel’s efforts to work with and make concessions to Gaza have been met with ongoing violence.
