Efe Washington

Washington

Updated Thursday, April 4, 2024-23:15

US President

Joe Biden

warned Israeli Prime Minister

Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday that

US

support

for the war in the

Gaza Strip

could change if he does not take

"concrete" actions to minimize harm to civilians

and guarantee peace. safety of humanitarian workers.

The phone call, which lasted about 30 minutes, was the first direct contact between the two leaders since the attack that on April 1 killed seven volunteers from World Central Kitchen (WCK), the NGO founded by Spanish chef

José Andrew.

According to the White House in a statement, Biden used the call to ask Netanyahu to

announce and implement "a series of specific, concrete and measurable steps

to address harm to civilians, humanitarian suffering and the safety of aid workers." .

He went on to warn that his government's future policy toward Gaza

"will depend" on the actions Israel takes

to comply with those requests.

In a similar tone, US Secretary of State

Antony Blinken

said this Thursday at a press conference in Brussels that Washington will modify its policies towards Israel if there are no changes in the Israeli military strategy in the Gaza Strip. where more than 33,000 people have died.

Changes within "hours" or "days"

No deadline has been set for Netanyahu to implement what he requested, but

John Kirby,

a White House spokesman, said the United States expects to see changes within "hours" or "days."

Neither the White House nor the State Department have detailed what concrete actions Israel must take for the United States to continue providing its support.

However, during the call, Biden conveyed to Netanyahu the "essential" need to

reach a ceasefire to improve the humanitarian situation in the enclave

and urged him to empower his negotiators to conclude "without delay" an agreement that allows the release of Israeli hostages.

Other measures that Israel could take include reducing violence against civilians and aid workers, as well as

opening new land crossings

so that humanitarian aid can enter the Strip, Kirby explained.

Biden feels "growing frustration" towards Netanyahu

According to Kirby, the call came at a time when Biden feels "growing frustration" with Netanyahu because

the Israeli leader has ignored

his requests in recent months to change his strategy.

The attack against seven World Central Kitchen workers was something that

"particularly moved" Biden

and, in that context, the call was made this Thursday, Kirby said.

Although it was not the central axis of the conversation, the two leaders also spoke about

Netanyahu's threats to launch a ground offensive on Rafah,

in the southern Gaza Strip and where 1.5 million Palestinians are crowded.

Netanyahu has been warning for months that he will enter the city of Rafah, where he claims Hamas militants are hiding, while

Biden has demanded a plan to protect civilians.

More military aid

Biden's decision to condition his support for Israel on changes on the ground represents

a shift in the policy maintained since the start of the war.

However, this variation is

merely symbolic

and is limited to the diplomatic level. For now, Biden has not put on the table what would be the greatest element of pressure:

the restriction or conditioning of the military aid

that the United States sends to Israel.

Since the beginning of the conflict, the Biden Government has approved the sale of

two military aid packages to Israel,

claiming that it is an emergency to bypass Congress, where the 14.3 billion requested by the president last year remain stagnant.

This same Thursday, The

Washington Post

reported that the US authorized on Monday - the same day that the attack on WCK took place - a new arms package to Israel that includes 2,000 small and medium diameter bombs.