Bob Woodward’s book shows permanent tensions and insults between Joe Biden and Benjamin Netanyahu. “Bibi, you have no strategy,” he even confronted the American president.
It hasn’t been an easy relationship. Since the conflict between Hamas and Israel began, the President of the United States of America (USA), Joe Biden, and the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, have disagreed on several points. The two allies try to keep these disagreements out of the public eye, but some passages in the book War by renowned journalist Bob Woodward, which will be published next week, show details and even insults that mark interactions between leaders.
For example, privately frustrated with Benjamin Netanyahu, Joe Biden even described the Israeli prime minister as a “son of a bitch” and “a bad guy.” The excerpt was published by CNN International, which had access to some passages.
Another passage reveals the tension of a telephone conversation in April between Benjamin Netanyahu and the American president, irritated by the Israel Defense Forces’ plans to enter Rafah, on the border between the Gaza Strip and Egypt. “What’s your strategy, man?” asked the Head of State, receiving in response that Tel Aviv would have to “enter Rafah.” “Bibi, you have no strategy,” responded Joe Biden.
Israel ended up entering Rafah, against American instructions. Joe Biden’s reaction to his advisors was explosive, as Bob Woodward writes: “He’s a fucking liar!”
In July, when Israel attacked a building in Beirut and killed a Hezbollah commander, Joe Biden shouted Benjamin Netanyahu. “Bibi, what the hell is this?” the president said, reminding him of the “perception of Israel in the world.” “They think that [Israel] “It is a delinquent State, a delinquent actor.”
In response, according to the book, Benjamin Netanyahu argued that the Hezbollah commander’s death was justified because he was one of the “terrorists who led” the Islamic group. “We saw the opportunity and we took advantage of it. The more we attack it, the more successful we will be in the negotiations,” said the Israeli Prime Minister.
The revelations emerge in the book of this veteran of journalistic investigation, who has worked for 50 years in Washington Post and won two Pulitzer Prizes, one for the Watergate affair, which led to the resignation of Richard Nixon.
Source: Observadora
