WASHINGTON
\nUS President Joe Biden has warned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu against escalation amid a regional war risk, said a report on Friday.
\nIn a \u201ctough\u201d phone call on Thursday, Biden told Netanyahu to \u201cstop escalating tension in the region,\u201d and \u201cmove immediately toward a Gaza hostage and ceasefire deal,\u201d Axios reported, citing two anonymous US officials.
\nThe White House said that during Thursday\u2019s call, Biden and Netanyahu discussed US military deployments to support Israel against various threats.
\n\u201cThe President discussed efforts to support Israel\u2019s defense against threats, including against ballistic missiles and drones, to include new defensive U.S. military deployments,\u201d it said in a statement, with Biden reaffirming his commitment to Israel\u2019s security against all threats from Iran.
\nBiden also stressed the importance of ongoing efforts to deescalate broader tensions in the region.
\nAccording to the Axios, the US officials said that Biden called Netanyahu to discuss US-Israeli joint military preparations for retaliations by Iran and Hezbollah, and also to make clear he was \u201cnot pleased\u201d with the direction of Netanyahu.
\nBiden complained to Netanyahu that the two had spoken last week at the White House about securing the hostage deal, but instead Netanyahu went ahead with the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Iran, one US official told Axios.
\nThe US will help Israel defeat an Iranian attack, Biden told Netanyahu, but after that he expects \u201cno more escalation\u201d from the Israeli side and immediate movement toward a hostage deal, according to the official.
\nBiden also warned Netanyahu that if he escalates again, he \u201cshouldn\u2019t count on the US to bail him out,\u201d the official said.
\nMeanwhile, there are reports that the US is poised to move resources to the Middle East if needed to defend itself and its allies, including Israel.
\nIn a phone call on Friday, US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin informed his Israeli counterpart Yoav Gallant about Washington\u2019s \u201cfuture defensive force posture changes\u201d in the Middle East.
\nNearly 39,500 Palestinians have been killed over a period of almost 10 months since Israel launched its brutal offensive on the Gaza Strip on Oct. 7 last year, following an attack by Palestinian group Hamas.
\nThe conflict has sparked increased regional tensions across the Middle East, with the latest escalation earlier this week when Haniyeh was assassinated during a visit to Iran.
\nDespite international organizations, including the UN, and regional countries are urging a cease-fire in Gaza and de-escalation of tensions in the Middle East, Netanyahu has vowed to \u201cexact a heavy price\u201d for any attack on Israel.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
WASHINGTON US President Joe Biden has warned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu against escalation amid a regional war risk, said a report on Friday. In a \u201ctough\u201d phone call on Thursday, Biden told Netanyahu to \u201cstop escalating tension in the region,\u201d and \u201cmove immediately toward a Gaza hostage and ceasefire deal,\u201d Axios reported, citing two […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":422742,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-422732","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n