WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. President Joe Biden spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday, three days after Israel launched an attack that killed seven World Central Kitchen aid workers in Gaza, according to a source familiar with the matter.
The White House has described Biden as outraged and heartbroken by the attack but the president has made no fundamental change in Washington’s steadfast support for Israel in its conflict against Palestinian Hamas militants.
A U.S. official said before the phone call that Biden was likely to bring up the need for better protections for humanitarian workers and for an increase of food shipments into Gaza.
Celebrity chef Jose Andres told Reuters in an emotional interview on Wednesday that the Israeli attack had targeted his aid workers “systematically, car by car.”
Israel said on Thursday its investigation into the attack may take weeks. The country’s leaders have voiced sorrow over the incident and described it as a misidentification.
(Reporting by Jeff Mason and Steve Holland; Writing by Doina Chiacu; Editing by Rami Ayyub)
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