Biden renews dialogue with Netanyahu for first time in weeks With Haris’s participation

President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris engaged in a telephone conversation with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, as confirmed by the White House.

The official statement noted, "This morning, President Biden spoke [by phone] with Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu. Vice President Harris also joined the conversation," with further details to follow in a written statement, Caliber.Az reports via foreign media.

In a call with Netanyahu, Biden also stressed the "need to minimize harm to civilians, in particular in the densely populated areas of Beirut".

On Gaza, the leaders discussed "the urgent need to renew diplomacy to release the hostages held by Hamas," the White House said.

The Israeli government's office had earlier reported on this phone call, highlighting that Netanyahu had not communicated with Biden for approximately 50 days and had been anticipating a call from the American leader for around 10 days.

Reports suggested that Biden intended to discuss Israel's potential plans for military action against Iran during the call on October 9. U.S. officials emphasized the importance of a significant but measured Israeli response to avoid escalation.

Meanwhile, Defence Minister Yoav Gallant stated that Israel remains committed to responding to Iran's missile attacks with a strike that would be "deadly and unexpected."

He asserted that while the Iranian attack was aggressive, it was not accurate. He emphasized that Israel's forthcoming response would be precise and swift, stating, "They [the Iranians] won't realize what happened or how it happened. They will just see the results."

Gallant assured that the Iranian strike did not compromise the capabilities of the Israeli Air Force, with all bases functioning normally and no aircraft damaged. He highlighted the cohesive effort among Israel's military and political leadership to plan an effective strike against Iran.

On October 1, Iran executed a large-scale missile strike against Israel in retaliation for the assassination of prominent figures from Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. While Tehran claimed that 90 per cent of the missiles successfully hit their targets, Israel contended that most of the approximately 180 missiles were intercepted. Israel's General Staff has pledged a strong response to this attack, while Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei warned that retaliatory actions against Israel would intensify.