Pressure on the Biden administration continued to grow on Monday after the conflict between Israel and Gaza intensified over the weekend and Democratic lawmakers openly called for a ceasefire in the region.
In a call with Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the president "expressed support for a ceasefire," according to a readout of the call provided by the White House.
Biden "reiterated his firm support for Israel’s right to defend itself against indiscriminate rocket attacks," according to the White House, while also encouraging Israel to "make every effort to ensure the protection of innocent civilians."
The president "expressed his support for a ceasefire" and also "discussed U.S. engagement with Egypt and other partners towards that end," the White House said.
In a briefing earlier Monday, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki defended the administration’s approach of “quiet diplomacy” and their desire for de-escalation, stopping short of others’ calls for an immediate end to the violence.
Psaki said the U.S. and President Joe Biden were engaging with leaders from both sides, pointing to the president’s weekend calls with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas.
“Every single action we take, every statement we make is with the objective of reducing the violence and bringing an end to the conflict on the ground,” the press secretary said. “There are times in diplomacy where we’ll need to keep those conversations quieter, where we won't read out every component of it.”
In a joint statement released Sunday, a group of 29 senators led by Sen. Jon Ossoff, Georgia’s first Jewish Senator, called for an immediate ceasefire between Israel and Hamas militants as the fighting continues to intensify.
“To prevent any further loss of civilian life and to prevent further escalation of conflict in Israel and the Palestinian territories, we urge an immediate ceasefire,” the group wrote in a statement.
Sen. Ossoff was joined by senators including Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Michael Bennet (D-CO), Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Dick Durbin (D-IL), Angus King (I-ME), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Patrick Leahy (D-VT), Ed Markey (D-MA), Patty Murray (D-WA), Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Brian Schatz (D-HI), Raphael Warnock (D-GA) and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA).
The statement was released on the deadliest day of fighting thus far in the week-long conflict, with at least 52 Palestinians killed in Gaza, according to the health ministry.
Also on Sunday, Connecticut Sen. Chris Murphy and Indiana Sen. Todd Young, the Chairman and Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on Near East, South Asia, Central Asia and Counterterrorism, called for a ceasefire in a joint statement.
"As a result of Hamas’ rocket attacks and Israel’s response, both sides must recognize that too many lives have been lost and must not escalate the conflict further," they wrote.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, who has long been a supporter of Israel, joined the chorus calling for a ceasefire on Monday: "I agree with the statement put out by Sens. Murphy and Young last night in its entirety. I want to see a ceasefire reached quickly and mourn the loss of life."
At least 200 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli airstrikes, including 59 children and 35 women, with another 1,300 wounded. Eight people in Israel were killed in rocket attacks launched from Gaza, including a soldier and a 5-year-old boy.
Violence has also erupted inside Israel as Jewish and Arab civilians have clashed, leaving dozens injured.
In his call with Prime Minister Netanyahu Saturday, President Biden repeated his support for Israel’s right to defend itself while also pointing to his concern about the lives lost in the conflict and the Israeli destruction of a building that houses Associated Press, Al Jazeera TV and other media outlets.
Last week, the president said that Israel’s response had “not been a significant overreaction.”
Meanwhile, independent lawmakers and many in his own party have called for stronger public statements from President Biden and for Israel to be held accountable for its treatment of Palestinians and the past week’s airstrikes on Gaza.
Sen. Bernie Sanders penned an op-ed in the New York Times Friday in which he criticized Netanyahu for what he called “increasingly intolerant and authoritarian type of racist nationalism.”
"With a new president, the United States now has the opportunity to develop a new approach to the world — one based on justice and democracy," Sanders wrote.
Progressive Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Rashida Tlaib and Ilhan Omar have also called out the president for his administration's response.
The Council on American-Islamic Relations, the United States' largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, said on Saturday they would boycott the White House's virtual Eid ul-Fitr celebration marking the end of Ramadan in response to the administration's stance on the situation.
On Monday, Psaki confirmed that the Biden administration supports a two-state solution to the ongoing conflict between Palestine and Israel, but she acknowledged that kind of solution was a ways off.
“We recognize and agree that watching the lives loss of these Palestinian children, of these families, the fear you see in the eyes of the Israeli people — it is heartbreaking,” she said. “We share a view that a two-state solution is the only way to bring the lasting end to the violence.”