President Joe Biden reportedly referred to Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu as a “[profanity] liar” following the entry of Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) into Rafah and raised his voice during a conversation after an Israeli Air Force operation eliminated a senior Hezbollah commander, as revealed in a forthcoming book by American journalist Bob Woodward. The tensions between the two leaders intensified during the spring of 2024, according to CNN, which obtained an early copy of the book titled “War.” In a phone conversation in April, Biden questioned Netanyahu directly: “What’s your strategy, man?”
Netanyahu explained that Israel needed to move into Rafah, a city located on the Gaza-Egypt border, which the IDF identified as Hamas’s final stronghold in Gaza. “Bibi, you’ve got no strategy,” Biden reportedly replied, with Woodward noting that the US president accused Netanyahu of being unconcerned about Hamas, stating he “doesn’t give a damn” about them and “only about himself.”
In May, Israeli troops executed a limited operation in Rafah that proceeded more smoothly than US expectations, receiving a muted reaction despite months of warnings from the White House against such an action.
The relationship between Biden and Netanyahu has been marked by significant strain throughout their time in office together. Although they have known each other for many years, the White House was openly critical of Netanyahu’s coalition with far-right elements in late 2022 and expressed serious reservations about his government’s proposed judicial reforms in 2023. Biden made history by being the first US president to visit Israel during wartime, arriving in Tel Aviv on October 18, 2023, and conveying strong support for the nation and its populace. However, over the past year, the two leaders have had both public and private disagreements regarding Netanyahu’s management of the war and the ongoing hostage negotiations.
After the operation in Rafah commenced, Biden remarked about Netanyahu: “He’s a [profanity] liar.” The president privately expressed his views, saying, “That son of a [profanity], Bibi Netanyahu, he’s a bad guy,” according to Woodward. Politico was the first to disclose that Biden had been using such language to refer to Netanyahu as early as February, but the White House promptly issued a denial.
In April, Israel reportedly executed two Revolutionary Guard generals in an Iranian consular annex located in Damascus, Syria. Following this, with assistance from the US and other allies in intercepting most of the missiles fired by Iran in retaliation, Biden urged Netanyahu to “take the win” and avoid further escalation. According to Woodward, Biden viewed Israel’s restrained response to the Iranian retaliation as a victory, stating, “I know he’s going to do something, but the way I limit it is tell him to ‘Do nothing.’”
In July, an airstrike in Beirut carried out by Israel resulted in the death of Fuad Shukr, a leading military figure in Hezbollah. “Bibi, what the [profanity]?” Biden reportedly exclaimed during their next discussion, according to the book. “You know the perception of Israel around the world increasingly is that you’re a rogue state, a rogue actor.” Shukr was instrumental in the 1983 bombing of the US Marine Corps barracks in Beirut, an attack that killed 241 American servicemembers. At the time of his death, the US had placed a $5 million bounty on him.
Woodward also recounted a conversation between US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman regarding the normalization of relations with Israel. Blinken inquired whether the Saudis required a Palestinian state as a condition for normalization. “Do I want it?” bin Salman asked. “It doesn’t matter that much. Do I need it? Absolutely.” Bob Woodward is widely recognized for being part of the investigative team that uncovered the “Watergate” scandal in 1972, which ultimately led to the resignation of US president Richard Nixon.
{Matzav.com}