Joe Biden shares 'only answer' to bringing deadly Israel war to an end

16 November 2023 , 02:13

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President Joe Biden addressed the nation in a rare press conference on Wednesday and spoke about the ongoing Israel-Hamas war and his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping (Image: AP)

In a rare press conference on Wednesday, President Joe Biden addressed the nation following his four-hour meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping — but the biggest bombshells from that conference came from questions he answered about the ongoing Israel-Hamas war.

Biden essentially detailed what he believed it would take for the war to end and bluntly outlined American foreign policy as it relates to Israel, Palestine and Hamas militants.

"I think this is going to stop when Hamas no longer maintains the capacity to murder and abuse and just do horrific things to the Israelis," he said, labeling the organisation as a terrorist group that wants to slaughter Israelis at every opportunity. He also noted that Hamas officials have warned that another attack is on the way.

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Biden said he has been in negotiations with Israeli officials, including President Benjamin Netanyahu, regarding the path forward to peace in the Israel-Hamas war (Anadolu via Getty Images)

As the Israeli military makes its moves, however, he emphasised that the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) "acknowledge that they have an obligation to use as much caution as they can in going after their targets." This comes after reports of the IDF bombing hospitals, refugee camps and UN bases, slaughtering entire families in their homes as they sheltered, just as Hamas militants did in Israeli villages on October 7. Over 12,000 civilians, many of them women and children, have been slaughtered at the hands of the IDF and Israel.

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Biden said Hamas isn't playing fairly, however, noting that many of their major bases are found in tunnels underneath the hospitals in question and that it can be difficult to weed them out when they base themselves in such places. He told reporters that he believed that they were the first to commit war crimes because of the location of their bases.

The hospital he was referring to was Al-Shifa hospital, which Israel recently raided. He said they were going door-to-door looking for Hamas militants and confirmed that weapons had been found in a Hamas command centre under the facility.

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Biden said freeing the hostages has been just one of his major priorities in recent weeks, but he did not provide an update during the press conference (AP)

That being said, he also said he "made it clear to the Israelis, to [Israeli President Benjamin Netanyahu] and to his war cabinet" that they must immediately remove themselves from the Gaza Strip when the war is over and they've accomplished their mission of eradicating Hamas. But when that will happen remains unclear.

Ultimately, he said the conflict will require a "two-state solution" before it ends — with Israelis and Palestinians living together in peace and harmony.

"I don't think it ends until there is a two-state solution," he said. "I think the only answer here is a two-state solution that's real." He emphasised again that he believes Israel should not occupy Gaza and that the Palestinians should have their own space.

Biden discussed the war crimes he said have been committed by Hamas as they make their base of operations the tunnels and rooms below and in hospitals (AP)

Negotiations between Israeli officials and the US have been ongoing, Biden revealed, but he said they've been going slowly as the threat of Hamas continues to loom over the Israelis' heads.

"We gotta get to the point where there is an ability to be able to even talk without worrying about whether or not we're just dealing with a Hamas that's going to engage in the same activities that it did over the past month. I don't think that works," he said.

Biden also discussed the ongoing hostage crisis, as several Americans still find themselves in the captivity of Hamas. He said rescuing them has been among his biggest priorities and that he's continued to be "deeply involved in moving on the hostage negotiations."

(AP)

He made an indirect reference to a ceasefire, which has been called for by countries around the world and the United Nations, noting that hostage rescue might require a "period of time where there's a pause long enough to have [a rescue] happen."

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He did not have any updates to provide on the situation at the press conference, however, as he had just been in a four-hour meeting with Xi.

During that meeting, which Biden said included "some of the most constructive and productive discussions [he and Xi have] had," the presidents discussed the growing threat of the fentanyl epidemic not only in the US but around the world. They agreed to restart cooperative efforts to mitigate the deaths resulting from the drug.

The press conference was centred on the four-hour meeting Biden had with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Wednesday (AFP via Getty Images)

"I’m pleased to announce that, after many years of being on hold, we are restarting cooperation between the United States and the PRC to counter narcotics," he said, specifically mentioning fentanyl. He said the talks related to the "flow of precursor chemicals" and drugs that are used to make fentanyl or mix it into other drugs and about pill presses. He vowed that the two nations will work together to stem the flow of both into and out of their countries.

Biden and Xi also discussed military actions and promised to keep each other apprised of exercises and other operations in each others' territories so as to avoid "miscommunications" and accidents that result from such.

Biden and Xi agreed to work together to mitigate the fentanyl epidemic (AFP via Getty Images)

"We’re back to direct, open, clear communications," Biden said. "Vital miscalculations on either side can cause real, real trouble with a country like China."

All the while, he emphasised that the US and China are still in competition regarding most things but said that when it comes to things like fentanyl, they will work together to mitigate threats. "We’re talking to our competitors, just talking bluntly with one another," he said.

The 2024 election was another point of conversation, and Biden promised the public that he implored Xi not to interfere with the election. They also discussed the hostages allegedly being held in the South China Sea and both countries' interests in Taiwan, but he was not very forthcoming with details about either.

Jeremiah Hassel