President Biden Urges Prime Minister Netanyahu to Bring Gaza Conflict to a Swift Conclusion

President Joe Biden expressed to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu the need to end the war against the Hamas terrorists in Gaza long before November’s general election, Axios reported.

Biden, who appears headed toward an election rematch against former President Donald Trump, fears the Gaza war risks his support among young voters, a presidential adviser told Axios.

In a phone conversation last week, Biden told Netanyahu to scale down the Israeli military operation against Hamas, two U.S. officials told Axios.

Biden also said he doesn’t understand the “end state” that Netanyahu envisions.

One “source close to the White House” told the outlet that Biden can’t afford to have the Gaza war and growing death toll drawing media attention as the elections get closer.

CNN in November reported that young voters are most concerned about Biden’s age (81), the economy, and the Israel-Hamas war.

The phone conversation was the first between Biden and Netanyahu since a frustrated president hung up on the prime minister on Dec. 23.

The Health Ministry in Gaza said Friday that 26,083 people have been killed and more than 64,400 wounded in the enclave since the Oct. 7 attack in southern Israel, when Hamas terrorists killed about 1,200 people and took 250 as hostages.

Netanyahu said Tuesday that Israel will push on with fighting in Gaza until “absolute victory” despite suffering one of its toughest days of the military offensive.

The Israeli military is “investigating the tragedy” in which 21 soldiers were killed when buildings exploded in central Gaza, bringing the single-day Israeli death toll to 24.

A U.S. official told Axios that at least a third of Biden’s 40-minute call with Netanyahu  on Jan. 19 concentrated on Israel’s war strategy, which included the timetable for moving to low-intensity operations across Gaza.

Biden urged Netanyahu to expedite moving to low-intensity operations that would decrease the number of civilian casualties, Axios reported.

Saying Israel needs more time in Gaza than originally thought, Netanyahu insisted Hamas would return if the Israel Defense Forces left Gaza now.

Biden also discussed humanitarian issues on the call. The president asked that a U.N. mission be allowed into northern Gaza to assess the conditions for a future return of Palestinian civilians, and that flour be moved through Israel’s Ashdod port to Gaza.

Biden also requested that Israel to help deliver aid from Jordan through the Kerem Shalom border between Israel and the southern part Gaza

Netanyahu agreed to all of the requests, a source told Axios.

The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this story.