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WASHINGTON —U.S. President Joe Biden on Thursday hosted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House for talks aimed at securing a longer cease-fire in Gaza and the release of hostages held there since Hamas' October 7 attack on Israel.
The two met in the Oval Office, a day after both leaders gave consequential speeches: Netanyahu spoke Wednesday before the U.S. Congress, where he defiantly defended his country's war against Hamas. And Biden delivered a sober, reflective Oval Office address in which he laid out the thinking behind his stunning Sunday decision to withdraw from the presidential race and throw his support behind his vice president.
Both men were blunt and brief in their remarks before their private meeting. A day earlier, a senior administration official told reporters that the two were working out details of a cease-fire and hostage-release deal, "which we believe is in the closing stages."
"Welcome back, Mr. Prime Minister," Biden said Thursday. "We've got a lot to talk about, maybe we should get to it."
"From a proud Jewish Zionist to a proud Irish American Zionist, I want to thank you for 50 years of public service and 50 years of support for the state of Israel," Netanyahu replied. "And I look forward to discussing with you today and working with you in the months ahead on the great issues of importance."
Meetings with Harris, Trump scheduled
Netanyahu will meet later on Thursday with Vice President Kamala Harris, and on Friday with former President Donald Trump, the Republican challenger in this tight, intense presidential race.
A senior administration official on Wednesday told reporters during a background briefing that the White House meeting will include discussion of threats to Israel from Iran-backed groups in the Middle East such as Hamas, Lebanon-based Hezbollah and Yemen's Houthi militants.
In addition to the humanitarian situation in Gaza, Biden and Netanyahu's agenda also includes talk about efforts to secure a cease-fire deal featuring a halt in fighting, the release of hostages held by Hamas in Gaza, the release of some Palestinian prisoners from Israel and a surge of humanitarian aid for Palestinians in Gaza.
The United States has been working with Egypt and Qatar to broker the cease-fire talks, which have stretched on for months amid competing demands from Israel and Hamas.
The official said there is a framework in place for the first stage of an envisioned three-stage agreement, and that the U.S. expects "a lot of activity over the coming week" as negotiators try to seal an agreement.
The first stage would last for 42 days and include Hamas releasing some of the hostages, including women, men over the age of 50, and those who are sick and wounded. The U.S. official said what is left to figure out are the implementation steps for the first phase, "how it will actually work day-to-day."
"There are some things we need from Hamas, and there are some things we need from the Israeli side," the official said.
Following their meeting, Biden and Netanyahu will meet with families of Americans who are among the hostages.
Netanyahu speaks to US lawmakers
Netanyahu went before the U.S. Congress on Wednesday to deliver a speech defending his country's war against Hamas and vowing to pursue the fight against Palestinian militants until "total victory" and the return of the remaining hostages they are holding.
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With thousands of pro-Palestinian, anti-war protesters in the streets outside the U.S. Capitol and more than 50 Democratic lawmakers boycotting his speech, Netanyahu said he was confident that negotiations for a cease-fire would eventually succeed. But he gave no hint of a breakthrough in the stalemated, monthslong talks.
Instead, he blamed Hamas for the continuation of the war. He attacked Iran for its funding of Hamas, Hezbollah and the Houthis, while assailing the nearby protesters and those at U.S. college campuses in recent months as "Iran's useful idiots" helping Israel's enemies.
The Israeli-Hamas war started with the October 7 Hamas terror attack on southern Israel that killed 1,200 people and led to the capture of about 250 hostages.
Israel's subsequent counteroffensive in Gaza has killed more than 39,000 people, most of them women and children, according to Gaza's Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between combatants and civilians in its count.