WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden on Wednesday spoke out against retaliatory attacks by Israeli settlers against Palestinians in the West Bank in the aftermath of the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks on Israel. He additionally mentioned he was redoubling his dedication to engaged on a two-state resolution to finish the decadeslong Israel-Palestinian battle.
Biden mentioned the attacks by settlers amounted to “pouring gasoline” on the already burning fires in the Center East since the Hamas assault.
“It has to cease, and it has to cease now,” Biden mentioned at the begin of a information convention with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, who was being honored with a state go to to Washington.
Settler violence against Palestinians has intensified since the Hamas assault, and Palestinians have been killed by settlers, in line with Palestinian authorities. Rights teams say settlers have torched vehicles and attacked a number of small Bedouin communities, forcing them to evacuate to different areas.
The West Bank Safety Consortium, a coalition of nongovernmental organizations and donor international locations, together with the European Union, says lots of of Palestinians have been forcibly displaced in the West Bank as a consequence of settler violence since Oct. 7. That’s in addition to over 1,100 displaced since 2022.
Lethal violence has been surging in the West Bank as the Israeli navy pursues Palestinian militants in the aftermath of the Hamas attack from Gaza.
The violence threatens to open one other entrance in the 2-week-old battle, and places strain on the internationally acknowledged Palestinian Authority, which administers elements of the West Bank and is deeply unpopular amongst Palestinians, in massive half as a result of it cooperates with Israel on safety issues.
Biden once more condemned the brutality of the Hamas assault that killed 1,400 Israelis and mentioned that he was satisfied that Hamas was pushed in half by a need undo U.S.-led efforts to normalize Israeli relations with a few of its Arab neighbors, together with Saudi Arabia.
The president additionally mentioned that after the Israel-Hamas battle involves an finish, Israeli, Palestinians and its companions should work in direction of a two-state resolution.
“Israelis and Palestinians equally need to reside facet by facet in security, dignity and peace,” Biden mentioned.
The Hamas-run Well being Ministry says greater than 6,500 Palestinians in Gaza have been killed in retaliatory strikes. Biden mentioned that it was important for Israel to maneuver rigorously in its response to reduce civilian deaths.
“Israel needs to be extremely cautious to make sure that they’re specializing in going after the of us which are propagating this battle,” Biden mentioned.
