Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is pushing back against President Joe Biden over U.S. concerns about the assassination of the political leader of Hamas and Israel’s approach to cease-fire talks in the latest rift between the two allies since the war in the Gaza Strip began 10 months ago.
In what a U.S. official described as a heated conversation Thursday, Netanyahu denied that Israel was an obstacle to a cease-fire agreement and rejected Biden’s contention that the killing of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh on Iranian soil could sabotage efforts to reach a deal halting hostilities and freeing hostages.
A senior Israeli government official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive relations between the two countries, said in an interview that Netanyahu insisted he was not trying to block a cease-fire. While he acknowledged that the death of Haniyeh, the main negotiator in the cease-fire talks, would interrupt progress for a few days, Netanyahu argued that it would ultimately hasten the finalization of an agreement by putting more pressure on Hamas, according to the Israeli official.
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