US President Joe Biden firmly demanded that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu immediately open the Erez crossing for aid trucks to enter the northern Gaza Strip, open the port of Ashdod to receive humanitarian aid, and speed up deliveries to Gaza during their phone conversation on Thursday, CNN reported.
According to the report, Netanyahu replied to Biden: "Joe, we're going to do it." It was also reported that another demand of Biden in the same conversation was that it be announced later that evening. A few hours later these measures were approved by the cabinet.
On Friday, Axios correspondent Barak Ravid reported that Biden issued an ultimatum to Netanyahu, stating that If Israel doesn't change course in Gaza, "we won't be able to support you."
Biden did not specify what a loss of US support would entail and he did not mention the possibility of stopping weapons shipments to Israel, the sources said. But it was the President's toughest call with Netanyahu since the October 7 attacks, both in tone and in substance, according to the report.
According to Ravid’s report, many of the most senior members of the Biden administration were on the 30-minute call Thursday, including Vice President Kamala Harris, Secretary of State Antony Blinken and National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan.
Harris later said that the conversation was "candid and frank" and added that Biden had made clear that the US will support Israel but, "At the same time, if there are not changes to their approach, it is very likely we're going to change our approach."