WashingtonCNN –
Divisions between the United States and Israel burst into the public eye on Tuesday as President Joe Biden warned that Israel was losing international support for its campaign against Hamas and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu publicly rejected American plans for the postwar Gaza Strip.
The divisions, which have so far largely taken place behind the scenes, have reflected growing differences between the two staunch allies as the civilian death toll in Gaza rises.
Speaking to Democratic donors in Washington, Biden criticized Israel's hardline government and said Netanyahu needed to change his approach.
“I think he needs to change, and with this government in Israel, this government is making it very difficult for him to move,” Biden said, calling Netanyahu’s government the “most conservative government in the history of Israel.”
He warned that support for the country's military campaign was waning amid the heavy bombardment of Gaza, adding that the Israeli government “does not want a two-state solution.”
Ahead of Biden's remarks at the fundraiser, Netanyahu admitted on Tuesday that he and the US president do not agree on what should happen to Gaza after the war. In a statement, the Israeli leader said: “Yes, there are differences of opinion about the 'day after Hamas' and I hope that we can reach an agreement here too.”
The two statements were among the most candid yet when it comes to the ongoing differences between Israel and the United States, its most important international ally.
Before the war broke out following the Hamas terrorist attacks on October 7, Biden had been open in his criticism of Netanyahu's ruling coalition, which includes right-wing extremist parties. But since the conflict began, he has largely stood side by side with Netanyahu in public, despite increasing criticism of Israel's election campaign.
Netanyahu has been repeatedly asked about his vision for a post-war Gaza in interviews with international media since October 7. Last month, he told CNN's Dana Bash in an interview that he sees a role for “some kind of civilian Palestinian authority,” albeit one that has been “reconstructed.”
But in his statement Tuesday before Biden's remarks at the Democratic fundraiser, Netanyahu said: “I want to make my position clear: I will not allow Israel to repeat the Oslo mistake.”
Biden's comments on Tuesday – particularly that the current Israeli government “does not want a two-state solution” – suggest major differences with his Israeli counterpart.
This idea – of a Palestinian state alongside the State of Israel – took shape in the 1990s with a series of agreements, the so-called Oslo Accords, which, among other things, created the Palestinian Authority (PA), which had partial control of Israel took over the West Bank and Gaza.
The Palestinian Authority was effectively driven out of Gaza by Hamas in 2007, but the Biden administration has become increasingly clear that it believes the Palestinian Authority should resume governing the enclave after the war ends.
“After the great sacrifice of our civilians and our soldiers, I will not allow those who educate for terrorism, support terrorism and finance terrorism to enter Gaza,” Netanyahu said.
“Gaza will be neither Hamastan nor Fatahstan,” Netanyahu's statement ended, referring not only to Hamas but also to Fatah, the largest Palestinian faction that was instrumental in the signing of the Oslo Accords and the Palestinian Authority three Continued to be controlled for decades later.
Israel began its attack on Gaza shortly after Hamas' terrorist attacks that left more than 1,200 people dead. Biden said Israel has the right and responsibility to defend itself.
But in phone calls, Biden encouraged Netanyahu to do more to avoid civilian casualties in Gaza, and senior administration officials said there was a “gap” between Israel's intentions and the realities on the ground.
Speaking Monday night at a Hanukkah reception at the White House, Biden acknowledged that Israel was in a “difficult situation” following the Oct. 7 Hamas attack and the subsequent war in Gaza. And he alluded to differences with Netanyahu amid the current fighting.
“We will continue to provide military assistance to Israel until it gets rid of Hamas, but we have to be careful — they have to be careful,” Biden said. “Public opinion around the world can change overnight, we cannot allow that.”
Biden and Netanyahu have had a decades-long, at times strained relationship. At Monday night's reception, Biden said he once gave Netanyahu a photo and wrote at the top: “I love you, but I don't agree with anything you have to say.”
“Today it’s about the same,” Biden said, adding that he “had my disagreements with some Israeli leaders.”
Biden administration officials in recent weeks have urged their Israeli counterparts to begin planning for what will happen after the military campaign ends in Gaza, insisting, among other things, that the door is left open to a possible Palestinian state hold.
The US said it would reject any proposal that would involve Israeli control of Gaza and warned against shrinking the borders of Palestinian territory.
The US is also pressuring Israel to open the Kerem Shalom border crossing so that humanitarian aid trucks can go directly to Gaza in an emergency, US officials told CNN.
The Israeli government on Tuesday allowed inspection of aid trucks in Kerem Shalom for the first time since Hamas' Oct. 7 attack. However, these trucks still have to travel back through Egypt before entering the Gaza Strip via the Rafah border crossing. While this move doubles Israel's capacity to inspect aid trucks, it does not solve the bottleneck created at the Rafah border crossing.
Biden raised the issue directly with Netanyahu during their final phone call last week, the U.S. officials said. National security adviser Jake Sullivan also urged his Israeli counterparts to open the Israel-Gaza border crossing before he arrives in Israel for meetings on Thursday, the officials said.
“Rafah cannot absorb enough aid to meet the needs of the Palestinian people, which are only growing as more people have been displaced,” Sullivan said in a telephone interview with CNN on Tuesday.
“We need the capacity that Kerem Shalom provides – in an emergency – to provide more food, water, medicine and essential supplies for distribution to Palestinian civilians, and we urge the Israeli government to say: 'This is us .' I ask you to do this as quickly as possible due to the nature of the humanitarian situation on the ground,” he added.
A spokeswoman for the Israeli prime minister's office declined to comment on the U.S. move. Israel has so far resisted the idea. It has halted all commercial and humanitarian aid traffic from Israel to Gaza since Hamas launched its surprise terror attack on October 7 and has vowed to cut all ties with Gaza.
This story has been updated with additional reporting.