US President Joe Biden urged Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to minimize harm to civilians in Lebanon, especially in the populated areas of Beirut, while reiterating support to target Hezbollah, the White House said after their call.
“The President affirmed Israel’s right to protect its citizens from Hezbollah, which has fired thousands of missiles and rockets into Israel over the past year alone, while emphasizing the need to minimize harm to civilians, in particular in the densely populated areas of Beirut,” the White House said in a statement.
On Gaza, the leaders discussed "the urgent need to renew diplomacy to release the hostages held by Hamas," it said.
Biden also discussed the humanitarian situation in Gaza and the imperative to restore access to the north, including by reinvigorating the corridor from Jordan immediately, according to the White House.
The call was the leaders' first known chat since August and coincided with a sharp escalation of Israel's conflict with both Iran and the Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon with no sign of an imminent ceasefire to end the conflict with Iran-backed Hamas in Gaza.
The Middle East has been on edge awaiting Israel's response to a missile attack last week that Tehran carried out in retaliation for Israel's military escalation in Lebanon.
Netanyahu has promised that arch-foe Iran will pay for its missile attack, while Tehran has said any retaliation would be met with vast destruction, raising fears of a wider war in the region which could draw in the United States.
