From the Liveblog of
Monday, March 4, 2024
PM’s office denies report that Biden refused call from Netanyahu after deadly Gaza aid chaos
Lazar Berman is The Times of Israel's diplomatic reporter
The office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu denies an unsourced report in Sky News Arabia that US President Joe Biden refused to accept a phone call from the Israeli leader after the deadly Gaza City melee during which dozens of Palestinians were killed and hundreds more wounded while swarming aid trucks, telling The Times of Israel that is it “fake news.”
Israel, says the PMO, “did not request a phone call from Biden after the incident, and the Americans, who in any case do not blame Israel for the incident, did not request a phone call with the prime minister.”
The Israeli military on Saturday promised an exhaustive and truthful investigation into the deaths of Palestinians queuing for aid in Gaza this week, an incident that has drawn condemnations and calls for an international inquiry.
Hamas accused Israeli troops of shooting at the crowd of thousands, while the IDF says many of the casualties were trampled in a chaotic crush for the food aid, and that its troops fired only at a few individuals who rushed toward them in a threatening manner.
There have been multiple reports of growing White House frustration with Netanyahu.
