What did Biden say about Netanyahu and his government? Internet reacts as rift between US and Israel's Presidents becomes public

American President, Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu's problems in seeing eye to eye with one another was revealed by the former in a 2024 re-election fundraiser on Tuesday, December 12. Biden stated that Israel was losing the support of its allies due to the "indiscriminate" bombing of Gaza and that Netanyahu and his "conservative" government had to change.

Reuters quoted him as saying:

"You cannot say no Palestinian state."

Netanyahu claimed in a statement on Tuesday that the United States was backing Israel on the ground incursion of Gaza, but couldn't see eye to eye when it came to the question of what would happen after the war.

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"Don't make the same mistakes we made in 9/11": Joe Biden tells Benjamin Netanyahu

On Tuesday, Joe Biden spoke at a fundraiser in a hotel in Washington, where he was introduced by an American Israel Public Affairs Committee. The fundraiser was attended by hundreds. During this event, the American President revealed disagreements between himself and Benjamin Netanyahu.

According to a Reuters report of the event, the American President assured the Israeli Prime Minister that his country's security could "rest on" the US but also reminded him that at the moment, he had support from "most of the world" including Europe and the European Union. However, Biden warned:

"But they're (Israel) starting to lose that support by indiscriminate bombing that takes place."

Biden recalled a phone call with Netanyahu in which the Israeli Prime Minister had reportedly reminded him that the US had "carpet bombed" Germany and dropped a nuclear bomb that killed civilians.

The American President recalled telling the Israeli Prime Minister that those were the reasons that institutions were set up - to ensure that it does not happen again. He further stated:

"Don't make the same mistakes we made in 9/11. There's no reason why we had to be in a war in Afghanistan,"

Biden went on to say that Netanyahu, and his government, which he called the "most conservative government in Israel's history" had to change. Itamar Ben-Gvir, Israel's ultra-right-wing Minister of National Security, was particularly mentioned. Biden said that there was an opportunity to "unite the region". He added:

"They still want to do it. But we have to make sure that Bibi (Netanyahu) understands that he's got to make some moves ... You cannot say no Palestinian state."

Benjamin Netanyahu released a statement on the same day, firmly stating that he would not allow his country to "repeat the mistake of Oslo". This alludes to the 1993 Oslo Accords that established a limited Palestinian self-governance over the Gaza Strip and the West Bank.

The Prime Minister also revealed that he had "full backing" from the US when it came to a Gaza ground incursion. However, he stated:

"There is disagreement about 'the day after Hamas' and I hope that we will reach agreement here as well."

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Netizens continue to criticize the United States and Israel

Netizens continued to be extremely critical of both the American President and the Israeli Prime Minister. People condemned both for the heavy Palestinian casualties incurred due to a conflict. Here are a few reactions to X (formerly known as Twitter) user @Megatron_ron's tweet regarding Biden's latest comments:

The American President reportedly hosted a White House Hanukkah party on Monday, December 11. Guardian reported that at the party, he said there would "not be a Jew in the world who is safe" if there were no Israel. He also stated that people did not need to be a Jewish to be a Zionist. "I am a Zionist," he reportedly added.