President of the United States Joe Biden has expressed regret to a number of well-known Muslim-American figures for openly challenging the number of Palestinian deaths provided by the Gaza Ministry of Health, which is under the control of Hamas.
According to a New York Post story, Biden apologized to a group of five Muslim American leaders the day after his remarks on October 25 on purported deaths in Gaza infuriated the Islamic community and he pledged to “do better.”
During the discussion, which had been scheduled to last 30 minutes but ended up lasting over an hour, Biden heard the leaders speak about people they knew who were directly impacted by the conflict.
“I apologize. According to the Washington Post, Biden told the group, “I’m disappointed in myself.”
Given Hamas’ history of terror, the president publicly questioned the veracity of the Gaza casualty estimates during a press conference the day prior.
“I don’t think the Palestinians are being honest about the number of deaths,” stated Biden.
He went on, “I’m sure innocents have died, and that’s a price of waging war.”
The fighting has killed over 14,000 Palestinians in Gaza, many of them women and children, according to figures from the Ministry of Health, which is under the leadership of Hamas.
During their meeting with Biden, Muslim-American leaders pushed him to be more sympathetic to the Palestinian people. At the conclusion of the meeting, Biden allegedly gave one of the attendees a hug.
According to the publication, Biden has been under pressure from people in his own administration, including a group of 20 employees who demanded to hear a plan to reduce the number of civilian casualties in Gaza this month.
Prominent Democrats have openly criticized the president’s handling of the conflict that is happening in another half of the planet.
In the wake of the horrific incident on October 7, Biden has reaffirmed US support for Israel, but he has also been pressing for a ceasefire to allow humanitarian supplies to reach the devastated Gaza Strip and the release of captives.
“I have been advocating for weeks to pause the fighting for two reasons: to make it easier for aid to reach the civilians in Gaza who are in need of it and to help with the hostage release,” Biden stated on Sunday.
The president declared, “We know that innocent children in Gaza are suffering greatly as well.”
Israel and Hamas decided to hold off on fighting for four days in order to negotiate a prisoner exchange for hostages.
In exchange for the interim calm and the release of dozens of Palestinian detainees, Hamas has consented to release about fifty hostages, and the pause started on Friday.
The president has been pleading with Israel to minimize civilian losses in its effort to drive out Hamas.
Biden was questioned about how some members of his own party want restrictions placed on aid to the steadfast US friend during a press conference on Friday.
“Well, that’s a good idea, but I don’t think we would have arrived at this point if I had started off that way.” Biden replied.