Biden asks Netanyahu for a security plan for the population of Rafah

The president of United States, Joe Bidenasked the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu not to carry out a military operation in the city of Rafah, in Gaza, unless a plan “guarantees the security” of the population, indicated the White House.

Rafah, on the border with Egypt, has become the last refuge for Palestinians who have been fleeing for four months from the incessant bombings launched by Israel in the Gaza Strip in response to the attack by Hamas on October 7th.

United States, the European Union and other governments have expressed their deep concern about Netanyahu’s plans to invade the city, where nearly 1.4 million people are gathered, many of them housed in tents amid shortages of food, water and medicine.

Biden “reiterated its opinion that a military operation in Rafah should not be carried out without a credible and achievable plan that guarantees security and support for the more than one million people who are taking refuge there,” referred to the White House in a summary of the conversation held this Sunday by both leaders.

Netanyahu, in excerpts from an interview published Saturday night, insisted that the operation in Rafah will be carried out “while we give safe passage to the civilian population so they can leave.”

He mentioned areas of northern Rafah that have been cleared and could be used as safe zones for civilians.

“We are working on a detailed plan to do so,” explained the prime minister.

The attack of Hamas to Israel on October 7 left 1,160 dead, most of them civilians, according to the AFP count based on official figures.

“The president reaffirmed our shared goal of seeing Hamas defeated and ensuring the long-term security of Israel and its people,” the White House said in a statement.

“He further called for concrete and urgent measures to be taken to improve the effectiveness and consistency of humanitarian assistance to innocent Palestinian civilians.”he added.

The call this Sunday morning is the first known contact between Biden and Netanyahu since the US president said he considered Israel’s military campaign in Gaza “excessive.”

“There are a lot of innocent people who are hungry, a lot of innocent people who are in trouble, dying, and this has to stop.”“Biden told reporters on Thursday, in comments that were seen as a hardening of his tone toward Israel.

The Ministry of Health in Gaza says the Israeli offensive since October 7 has left 28,064 dead, most of them women and children.