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For BBC correspondent Anthony Zurcher, Biden’s speech could hamper US and Israeli efforts in the conflict
4 hours ago
*The following text contains information that may be perceived as disturbing
The White House denied that the President of the United States, Joe Biden, had seen photos of “terrorists beheading children” on Wednesday afternoon (10/11), as the Democrat had previously stated.
When asked by the BBC, the White House said that Biden had not seen the images.
“He was referring to reports from Israel,” the presidential office said.
After an event with Jewish community leaders in Washington, Biden said in a speech that he had seen images of Israeli children killed in attacks by the Palestinian extremist group Hamas on Saturday (July 10).
“I never thought I would see photos of terrorists beheading children,” said the American president.
Reports that there would be such photos circulated on social media, but their accuracy has not been confirmed by the Israeli Defense Forces.
BBC North America correspondent Anthony Zurcher explains: “Joe Biden, like his predecessor.” [Donald Trump]tends to go off script at times.”
“Therefore, your team must make efforts to clarify or retract these statements,” recalls Zurcher.
For the correspondent, the debate over the veracity of the statement caused the focus to divert from Biden’s message that he condemns the Hamas attack and fully supports Israel.
“Murdered children are a heartbreaking tragedy, no matter how they were killed. “But Biden’s comments complicate matters for the US, which wants to help and support Israel,” he analyzes.
“As the fog of war continues to swirl around this new conflict, there is a risk that any regression or confusion will help those who sow disinformation and sow doubt about events and atrocities that are demonstrably true,” Zurcher says.