Agencies : In a short statement before meeting Israel’s war cabinet, Biden stresses that the US “will continue to have your back.”

Biden praises the cabinet for “standing strong, standing united.”

He recalls that Israel’s founders said that the nation would be based on “freedom, justice, and peace.”

“The United States stands with you in defense of that freedom, in pursuit of that justice, and in support of that peace, today, tomorrow, and always, we promise you,” Biden says.

The two try to ignore shouted questions as the press is hustled away.

“They don’t give up,” says Netanyahu, who has generally refused to speak to the Israeli press since taking office almost a year ago.

“Nothing changes, same in Washington,” Biden replies.

Before Biden’s meeting with Israel’s war cabinet, Netanyahu puts the focus on Hamas war crimes.

“While Israel seeks to minimize civilian casualties, Hamas seeks to maximize civilian casualties,” he says in a public statement ahead of the meeting. “Hamas wants to kill as many Israelis as possible, and has no regard whatsoever for Palestinian lives.”

“Every day, they perpetrate a double war crime – targeting our civilians, while hiding behind their civilians, embedding them in the civilian population, and using them as human shields.”

“Hamas is responsible and should be held accountable for all civilian casualties,” he continues. “We saw the cost of this terrible war crime yesterday, when a rocket fired by a Palestinian terrorist misfired and landed on a Palestinian hospital. The entire world was rightly outraged, but the outrage should be directed not at Israel, but at the terrorists.”

Netanyahu pledges that Israel would continue to work to keep civilians out of harm’s way, and will work with the US to do so.

“The road to victory will be long and hard,” concludes Netanyahu. “But united in purpose, and with a deep sense of justice… Israel will prevail,” he says, noting the spirit and will of the country and its soldiers.

• President Joe Biden meets with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Wednesday, Oct. 18, 2023, in Tel Aviv. (AP/Evan Vucci)
• US President Joe Biden is greeted by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu after arriving at Ben Gurion International Airport, Wednesday, Oct. 18, 2023, in Tel Aviv. (AP/Evan Vucci)
• People inspect the damage at Ahli hospital in central Gaza on October 18, 2023, following a deadly blast which ripped through it a day earlier. (Dawood NEMER / AFP)
• Israeli army spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari shows the press a graphic of alleged rocket launches near al-Ahli Hospital in Gaza at a press conference in Tel Aviv on October 18, 2023. (GIL COHEN-MAGEN / AFP)
• US President Joe Biden boards Air Force One at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland, on October 17, 2023, en route to Israel. (Brendan Smialowski / AFP)
• People inspect the damage at Ahli Arab hospital in central Gaza on October 18, 2023, following a deadly blast which ripped through it a day earlier. (Dawood NEMER / AFP)
• A Lebanese protester flashes the V for victory sign on October 18 as a fire rages behind the security gate of the US embassy after clashes with security forces during a demonstration in solidarity with the people of Gaza in Awkar, east of Beirut on October 17, 2023. (JOSEPH EID / AFP)
• Palestinian families rush out of their homes after Israeli airstrikes in their neighborhood in Gaza City, central Gaza Strip, Tuesday, Oct. 17, 2023. (AP/Abed Khaled)
• Israeli soldiers are positioned outside kibbutz Beeri near the border with the Gaza Strip on October 17, 2023. (JACK GUEZ/AFP)
• People stand over bodies of Palestinians killed in a strike on the Ahli Arab hospital in central Gaza after they were transported to Al-Shifa hospital, on October 17, 2023. (Dawood NEMER / AFP)
• An Israeli soldier inspects a damaged home in Kibbutz Be’eri, Israel, Tuesday, Oct. 17, 2023. (AP/Ariel Schalit)
• Wounded Palestinians lie on the floor in al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City, central Gaza Strip, after arriving from al-Ahli Hospital following an explosion there, Tuesday, Oct. 17, 2023. (AP/Abed Khaled)
• German police officers stand guard in front of the building complex of the Kahal Adass Jisroel community after it was attacked by two incendiary devices, in the center of Berlin, Germany, October 18, 2023. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)
• Mourners attend the funeral of the Kotz family during their funeral in Gan Yavne, Israel, Tuesday, October 17, 2023. (AP/Ohad Zwigenber)
• Demonstrators throw stones towards the French embassy during a protest in solidarity with the Palestinian people in Gaza, in Beirut, Lebanon, Tuesday, Oct. 17, 2023. (AP/Bilal Hussein)
• Firefighters put out a blaze after a rocket strike in Ashkelon during the 2023 Israel-Gaza war (courtesy EVP)
• People take part in a protest outside the Israeli consulate to show solidarity with Palestinians, in Istanbul early on October 18, 2023. (UMIT TURHAN COSKUN / AFP)

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