Biden takes tougher stance on Israel as 'indiscriminate' strikes continue in Gaza

U.S. President JoeBidenon Tuesday warned thatIsraelwas losing international support because of its "indiscriminate bombing'' of Gaza, speaking out in unusually strong language as the United Nations neared a vote on demanding a ceasefire in theIsrael-Hamaswar.

"Israel's security can rest on the United States, but right now it has more than the United States. It has the European Union, it has Europe, it has most of the world supporting them,''Bidensaid to donors during a fundraiser on Tuesday.

"They're starting to lose that support by indiscriminate bombing that takes place,'' hesaid.

The president said he thought Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu understood, but he wasn't so sure about the Israeli war cabinet. Israeli forces were carrying out punishing strikes across Gaza, crushing Palestinians in homes as the military presses ahead with an offensive that officials say could go on for weeks or months.

The president offered a harder-than-usual assessment ofIsrael's decisions since the Oct. 7 attack on southern Israel byHamasand the moves by Netanyahu's conservative government.Biden's top national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, heads toIsraelthis week to consult directly.

Bidenalso renewed his warnings thatIsraelshould not make the same mistakes of overreaction that the U.S. did following the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

He recounted a well-worn story about him inscribing on a photo with Netanyahu decades ago, "Bibi, I don't agree with a damn thing you have to say.'' This time, the president added to his retelling of the story: "That remains to be the case.''

WATCH | Biden has facedpressure to change his approach to Israel:

Biden pressured to change approach to Israel

10 months ago

Duration 2:00

U.S. President Joe Biden says hes working to keep the Israel-Hamas truce going as long as possible, but hes facing pressure to change his approach to Israel by adding conditions to U.S. support.

The fundraiser was part of a gathering of Jewish donors, many of whom attended a White House Hanukkah reception on Monday evening.

Bidensaid that when he has warned Netanyahu of a loss of international support over the bombing, the Israeli leader has mentioned that the U.S. had "carpet-bombed Germany'' in the Second World War and dropped the atomic bomb on Japan.

"That's why all these institutions were set up after World War II, to see that it didn't happen again,'' he said. "Don't make the same mistakes we made in 9/11. There's no reason we had to be in a war in Afghanistan. There's no reason we had to do so many things that we did.''

The UN General Assembly was set to hold a vote on Tuesday on a non-binding resolution demanding an immediate humanitarian ceasefire, days after the U.S. vetoed a similar measure at the UN Security Council. The U.K abstained from the 13-1 vote, but France and Japan were among those supporting the call for a ceasefire. Only Security Council resolutions are legally binding under the terms of the international body's charter.

BeforeBiden's comments at the fundraiser, Netanyahu said in a statement that he appreciated American support and that he'd received "full backing for the ground incursion and blocking the international pressure to stop the war."

"Yes, there is disagreement about `the day afterHamas' and I hope that we will reach agreement here as well. I would like to clarify my position: I will not allowIsraelto repeat the mistake of Oslo. Gaza will be neither Hamastan nor Fatahstan."

Bidenspecifically called out Itamar Ben-Gvir, the leader of a far-right Israeli party and the minister of national security in Netanyahu's governing coalition, who opposes a two-state solution and has called forIsraelto reassert control over all of the Israeli occupied West Bank and Gaza. Ben-Gvir sits onIsrael's security cabinetbut is not a member of the country's three-person war cabinet.

'U.S. position on this is clear,' top adviser says

Earlier Tuesday, Sullivan said he would speak with Netanyahu about timetables for ending major combat in Gazaand that he would be carryingBiden's thoughts on the matter. He said he would also be looking to hear from Netanyahu and Israeli officials on the issue.

"The subject of how they are seeing the timetable of this war will certainly be on the agenda for my meetings,'' Sullivan said during an appearance at a forum hosted by the Wall Street Journal.

Sullivan suggested that at some point, there would be a shift from the high-intensity Israeli operations seen over the last several weeks to more focused operations to achieve Israeli objectives. He said he would also speak to Netanyahu about his recent comments thatIsraelDefence Forces would maintain open-ended security control of Gaza after the war ends.

Sullivan reiterated theBidenadministration's position that it does not want to seeIsraelreoccupy Gaza or further shrink its already small territory.

The U.S. has repeatedly called for a return of the internationally recognized Palestinian Authority and the resumption of peace talks aimed at establishing a Palestinian state alongsideIsrael.

"I will have the opportunity to talk to Prime Minister Netanyahu about what exactly he has in mind with that comment, because that can be interpreted in a number of different ways,'' Sullivan said. "But the U.S. position on this is clear."