US President Joe Biden told ABC News on Thursday that he believes Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu took the administration's concerns over a military operation in Rafah into account.
"I think he's listening to me. They were going to go into […] Rafah […] full bore, invade all of Rafah, go into the city, take it out, move, move with full force. They haven't done that," Biden said.
"And what they've done is they've agreed to a significant agreement," Biden added, in a reference to the three-stage proposal he unveiled last Friday.
Asked whether Netanyahu is supportive of the deal that is on the table, Biden replied, "Publicly said he is."
The President also said that Hamas still has to accept the proposal. "It's being backed by Egypt, being backed by the Saudis, being backed by almost the whole Arab world. We'll see, this is a very difficult time."
The US had previously been vocal in its opposition to an Israeli operation in Rafah. Biden had warned that he would halt shipments of American weapons to Israel if Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu orders a major invasion of the city.
However, a senior Biden administration official subsequently said that Israel has addressed many of Biden's concerns over its operation in the Rafah.
According to the ceasefire proposal outlined by Biden last week, the first phase of the three-phase process would last for six weeks and would include a full and complete ceasefire, withdrawal of Israeli forces from all populated areas of Gaza, and the release of a number of hostages, including women, the elderly, and the wounded, in exchange for the release of hundreds of Palestinian Arab prisoners.
Phase two would see the release of all remaining living hostages, while phase three would encompass "a major reconstruction plan for Gaza," said the President, as well as the repatriation of the remains of deceased hostages to their families.
State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller on Wednesday published a video to his social media account in which he outlined Biden’s three-phase plan and urged Hamas to accept it.
“The only thing standing in between the people of Gaza and an immediate ceasefire is Hamas,” Miller said.