Biden and Netanyahu meet with urgency to reach ceasefire deal at top of the agenda

Washington (CNN) — President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met at the White House Thursday afternoon, where sources told CNN the president was expected to be as forceful as he has ever been in urging Netanyahu to accept a ceasefire agreement, as US officials believe that a deal may be on the cusp.

“We’re closer than we’ve ever been,” one senior administration official said. “It’s up to the Israelis to accept it.”

Biden’s in-person meeting with Netanyahu followed the Israeli prime minister’s speech to Congress on Wednesday, which sparked protests including instances of antisemitism or pro-Hamas rhetoric in Washington, DC. The White House has condemned such demonstrations.

In brief remarks before the meeting, Netanyahu mentioned how the two men have known each other for four decades. He added: “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.”

Biden reminisced about meeting with previous Israeli leaders before making a joke about his age: “That’s how far back it goes. I was only 12 then.” Neither leader responded to shouted questions from reporters.

The meeting, which was Biden’s first with a world leader since announcing he would drop out of the 2024 race, came at a fragile point in their decadeslong relationship. A resolution to end the Israel-Hamas war that began in October now looms large over Biden’s legacy as a one-term president. Progress in the negotiations for a ceasefire have come in fits and starts in recent months, and Biden and his senior national security officials have been closely involved in trying to land the deal.

During the meeting, the president stressed the need to finalize the deal as soon as possible, according to a readout from the White House.

“Biden expressed the need to close the remaining gaps, finalize the deal as soon as possible, bring the hostages home, and reach a durable end to the war in Gaza,” the readout said. “The President also raised the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, the need to remove any obstacles to the flow of aid and restoring basic services for those in need, and the critical importance of protecting civilian lives during military operations.”

Biden also participated in a meeting with Netanyahu that included families of American hostages in Gaza - a separate setting where he could apply firm pressure on Netanyahu to finalize the ceasefire agreement.

“In this setting he will really be held accountable to his commitment of pursuing a ceasefire and hostage deal,” said one US official.

Families of the American hostages have expressed frustration in recent months about the relative lack of outreach from Netanyahu and his office – particularly in comparison to the regular cadence of communication that has come from senior Biden administration officials since the war began.

One family member who attended the Thursday afternoon meeting with Biden and Netanyahu told CNN before the meeting that they hoped the president would use the setting to exert serious pressure on his Israeli counterpart – particularly now that Biden is free from the political burdens of a reelection campaign.

After their meeting with the president and Netanyahu, some family members struck an optimistic tone on the prospects of a deal being reached soon.

“We feel more optimistic than we have since the first round of releases in late November, early December,” said Jonathan Dekel-Chen. “We got absolute commitment from President Biden and Prime Minister Netanyahu that they understand the urgency of this moment now. And to waste no time. And to complete this deal as it currently stands with as little change as humanly possible.”

When the Biden administration proposed a joint meeting with the families, some US officials did not expect Netanyahu to accept the proposal, two US officials said.

Other US officials believed that Netanyahu would have no choice but to accept the offer, and viewed it as an opportunity to put the Israeli leader in the hot seat in front of both Biden and hostage families amid ongoing efforts to reach a ceasefire and hostage deal, officials said.

Multiple sources stressed that no major announcement about an agreement is expected on Thursday. However, as CNN reported this week, US and Israeli officials have voiced increased optimism about the prospects of an agreement.

While Biden has remained firmly behind Israel, even as its campaign in Gaza has killed tens of thousands of Palestinians, both leaders have traded not-so-subtle barbs in recent months over the future of the war and how Netanyahu has waged it.

Biden has described Israel’s actions in Gaza as “over the top,” threatened to withhold some new arms transfers and repeatedly pressured Netanyahu to scale back and be more precise in his military operation in Gaza – criticism that reached a peak when an Israeli strike killed seven World Central Kitchen workers in early April. The Israeli leader has been steadfast in his position that the war will not end until Hamas is eliminated while accusing the US of withholding weapons from its closest ally – claims that American officials flatly rejected.

Speaking in front of Congress this week, Netanyahu did not substantially address the status of ceasefire negotiations. He instead praised Biden for his “heartfelt support” for Israel after the October 7 Hamas attack while urging the US to fast-track military aid to “dramatically expedite an end to the war.”

“As we defend ourselves on all fronts, I know that America has our back and I thank you for it – all sides of the aisle,” Netanyahu said.

US officials remain sensitive to Israeli politics that may be shaping Netanyahu’s calculations – including, as CNN has reported, the timing of Israel’s parliament going into recess at the end of the month, which would make it harder for right-wing opponents of the deal to move to collapse the government.

The US does not believe, for now, that Netanyahu is standing in the way of or delaying a ceasefire and hostage deal, and believes that progress is being made amid ongoing negotiations, according to a senior administration official. Both the Israelis and Hamas, the official said, have elements they need to agree on before a deal is reached, and not one side is holding up negotiations at this point.

The in-person meeting at the White House was the first time the two men have met in person since Biden’s trip to Israel last year following the October 7 attack, although the two men have spoken frequently on the phone. It was followed by the meeting with American hostage families, and then Netanyahu met with Vice President Kamala Harris, whom Biden has endorsed to replace him on the top of the Democratic ticket.

In remarks to reporters following their meeting, Harris said that she told Netanyahu it is time to get a ceasefire deal “done,” adding that she “will not be silent” about the suffering in Gaza.

Harris touted her “unwavering” support for Israel while warning Netanyahu’s government that it matters how the war is conducted.

The prime minister in his remarks to Congress criticized anti-Israel protesters as “Iran’s useful idiots” and falsely downplayed the role of Israel in causing the ongoing civilian suffering in Gaza.

Biden’s support for Israel’s war had been one his most politically toxic issues within his own party for much of the year, with many of his public campaign appearances being repeatedly interrupted by protesters demanding a ceasefire in Gaza. Biden’s stance toward those protests has been conciliatory – he has repeatedly responded to them by saying that the protesters have a point, and that too many innocent people are dying in Gaza.

But the national conversation surrounding Biden’s handling of Israel’s war took a back seat to the waves of Democratic concern about his ability to beat former President Donald Trump after his faltering debate performance last month. Trump and Netanyahu will meet Friday at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida, Trump announced Tuesday.

Last week, Biden spoke extensively about the war in the Middle East for the first time in months – telling a Complex Networks interviewer that he considers himself a Zionist but adding that he’s “done more for the Palestinian community than anybody” while still calling for more aid to reach the Gaza Strip.

“I’m the guy that opened up all the assets. I’m the guy that made sure that – I got the Egyptians to open the border to let goods through, medicine and food,” Biden said. “I have been very supportive of the Palestinians, but Hamas, they’re a bunch of thugs.”

Biden and Netanyahu last spoke during a 30-minute call on July 4, during which both leaders “focused” on details about a possible hostage exchange and ceasefire deal.

A deal was never finalized or assured during that call.

CNN’s Sam Fossum contributed.

This story and headline have been updated with additional developments.

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