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U.S. President Joe Biden is adding to the pressure on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, saying he isn’t doing enough to reach a cease-fire deal in Gaza.
Biden spoke to reporters two days after six hostages, including one Israeli-American, were found after being killed by Hamas. Protests rocked Israel on Sunday.
Asked if Netanyahu was doing enough, Biden responded, “No.” Biden was arriving at the White House for a Situation Room meeting with advisers involved in negotiating a hostage deal and cease-fire. The president insisted that negotiators remain “very close” to a deal, adding that “hope springs eternal.”
A general strike in Israel to protest the failure to reach a deal and secure the return of hostages led to closures and other disruptions around Israel on Monday, but it was ignored in some areas, reflecting deep political divisions.
Hundreds of thousands of Israelis poured into the streets Sunday in grief and anger after six hostages were found dead in Gaza. The families and much of the public blamed Netanyahu, saying they could have been returned alive in a deal with Hamas to end the nearly 11-month-old war.
But others support Netanyahu’s strategy of maintaining military pressure on Hamas, whose Oct. 7 attack into Israel triggered the war. They say it will force the militants to give in to Israeli demands and ultimately annihilate the group.