Biden calls for temporary ceasefire in Gaza to allow for humanitarian aid in policy shift

President Joe Biden said that Israel should call for a six-to-eight-week ceasefire with Hamas to allow for humanitarian aid into Gaza.

Mr Biden made the remarks in an interview with Univision conducted last week that aired on Tuesday evening.

“So I what I'm calling for is for the Israelis to just call for a ceasefire, allow for the next six, eight weeks total access to all food and medicine going into the country,” he told Univision journalist Enrique Acevedo.

The words signal a shift for Mr Biden, who had previously called for a ceasefire to be coupled with a release of hostages. Mr Biden said that he had spoken with the governments of Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Egypt.

“They're prepared to move in,” he said. “They're prepared to move this food in. And I think there's no excuse to not provide for the medical and the food needs of those people. It should be done now.”

Mr Biden also vocally criticised Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, saying that Mr Netanyahu’s approach to the war in Gaza is “a mistake.” This comes months after Mr Biden has vocally supported Israel’s strategy to combat Hamas after the terror group conducted a surprise attack on October 7 wherein militants killed 1,200 people and took more than 200 hostages.

Last week, Mr Biden spoke with Mr Netanyahu after an Israeli airstrike killed seven aid workers for World Central Kitchen in Gaza.

“I think it’s outrageous that those four, three vehicles were hit by drones and taken out on a highway where it wasn’t like it was along the shore, it wasn’t like there was a convoy moving there,” Mr Biden told Univision.

A readout of the call said that Mr Biden called the airstrike “unacceptable” and “made clear” to the prime minister that US policy would