US issues ultimatum to Israel: Gaza ceasefire “immediately”, hostage agreement “without delay”

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• Biden told Netanyahu in the call that Palestinian civilians and foreign aid workers should be protected or the United States would reconsider supporting Israel’s war against Hamas, the White House reported.

• Biden administration officials said the U.S. president has made no secret of the consequences of the war and that his conversations with Netanyahu were “direct” and “honest.”

• The White House did not specify what steps the United States wanted Netanyahu to take or what actions the United States would take if the Israeli prime minister did not comply with Washington’s warnings.

• Meanwhile, former President Donald Trump, a Republican running for the White House, said Israel is “absolutely going to lose this war” and sent a tough message to the Jewish nation to “get it over with.” He also called for a speedy resolution to end the fighting.

• CNN quoted an Israeli official as saying that the crossing would be opened to allow more humanitarian aid to enter Gaza. The cabinet also approved the use of the Israeli port of Ashdod to help deliver more aid to the war-torn enclave.

• Netanyahu has vowed to launch an offensive against Hamas’s last stronghold of Rafah, despite U.S. objections. The move could endanger the lives of more than half of Gaza’s population who have settled in southern Gaza towns after fleeing other parts of the strip during the war.