Biden, Jordan’s King Abdullah call for enduring end to Israel-Hamas crisis

Washington, DC [US], February 13 (ANI): US President Joe Biden held discussions with Jordan’s King Abdullah II bin Al-Hussein and the two leaders have affirmed their commitment to work together to produce an enduring end to the Israel-Hamas crisis, the White House said in a statement.

In a post on X on Tuesday, following a meeting with King Abdullah at the White House, President Joe Biden said, “Today, King Abdullah II and I discussed how no major military operation in Rafah should proceed without a credible plan to ensure the safety and support for the more than one million people sheltering there.”

Addressing a press conference with the morarch of Jordan, Biden underscored the importance of upholding the status quo on a hill in Jerusalem’s Old City known to the Muslims as the Haram al-Sharif or the Noble Sanctuary and to the Jews as Har ha-Bayit or the Temple Mount, recognizing Jordan’s crucial role as the custodian of Muslim holy places in Jerusalem, the White House said in a statement.

Further, the US President said that both he and the Jordanian king remain committed to achieving a durable, lasting peace to include a two-state solution for the Palestinian people with Israel’s security guaranteed.

King Abdullah, who spoke after Biden, also warned against the danger of “seventy decades of occupation” as he called for a two-state resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict

“Seven decades of occupation, death, and destruction have proven beyond any doubt that there can be no peace without a political horizon,” the King of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan said as reported by The Jerusalem Post.

“Continued escalations by extremist settlers in the West Bank and Jerusalem’s holy sites and the expansion of illegal settlements will unleash chaos on the entire region,” King Abdullah said.

King Abdullah also called for a “permanent ceasefire”, while the US has pushed for an extended humanitarian pause, the Jerusalem Post reported.

He stated that, “We must make sure the horrors of the past few months since October 7th are never repeated nor accepted by any human being,” King Abdullah said.

The Jordan monarch stressed that the only solution to the violence was “a political horizon that leads to a just and comprehensive peace based on the two-state solution — an independent, sovereign, and viable Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital but living side by side with Israel in peace and security.”

Meanwhile, the White House said that Biden and King Abdullah reiterated their “shared commitment to facilitating the increased, sustained delivery of life-saving humanitarian assistance to Palestinian civilians in Gaza.”

Palestinian authorities have reported a staggering death toll, with over 28,340 lives lost since the onset of the Israeli offensive in October, predominantly comprising women and children. Aid agencies estimate that over 80 per cent of Gaza’s population has been displaced, with extensive damage inflicted on the region.

Aid agencies estimate that more than 80 percent of Gaza’s population has been displaced, and extensive damage has been inflicted on the region. Israel initiated its military campaign in response to an attack by Hamas on southern Israel on October 7, resulting in the deaths of at least 1,139 individuals, primarily civilians.