Netanyahu rejects Biden criticism, says majority of Israelis back him

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected US President Joe Biden's rebuke of Israel's military offensive in Gaza on Sunday and said the vast majority of Israelis support him.

Of the president's comments, he said, "if he meant by that that I'm pursuing private policies against the majority, the wish of the majority of Israelis, and that this is hurting the interests of Israel, then he's wrong on both counts."

Netanyahu spoke to Bild, Welt TV and Politico, all of whom are owned by the Berlin-based Axel Springer company, at his official residence in Jerusalem. The interview took place as tensions mount between the United States and Israel, two historically close allies.

Netanyahu was making a "big mistake" by not doing enough to protect civilians, Biden told US broadcaster MSNBC on Saturday, and this failure "is hurting Israel more than helping Israel."

"He has a right to defend Israel, a right to continue to pursue Hamas," Biden said of Netanyahu.

"But he must, he must, he must pay more attention to the innocent lives being lost as the consequence of the actions taken. He's hurting, in my view, he is hurting Israel more than helping Israel ... it's contrary to what Israel stands for. And I think it's a big mistake."

"We cannot have 30,000 more Palestinians dead," Biden said, using the figure issued by the Hamas-run Health Ministry in Gaza. He said Israel was losing support worldwide.

However, Netanyahu said on Sunday that his policy is supported by an "overwhelming majority" of Israelis.

"They support the action that we're taking to destroy the remaining terrorist battalions of Hamas," he said, referring to plans for a ground offensive in the southern Gaza city of Rafah.

The plans have been widely criticized amid fears of mass civilian casualties, given that some 1.5 million people have fled to the city in the southern-most part of Gaza from fighting elsewhere in the densely-populated strip.

Biden's remarks came after he called out Israel in his high-profile State of the Union address on Thursday. The US leader, who is seeking a second term in November, is facing growing unrest within his own Democratic Party over his handling of war, now in its six month.

Meanwhile in Israel, Netanyahu's poll ratings have plummeted as Israelis accuse him of not wanting to take responsibility for the security forces failing to prevent the massacre.

The Gaza war was triggered by a massacre carried out by terrorists from the Islamist Hamas and other extremist groups in southern Israel on October 7.

More than 1,200 people were killed on the Israeli side. Israel responded with massive air strikes and a ground offensive in Gaza.

According to the Hamas-controlled health ministry in Gaza, more than 31,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, have been killed since the start of the war and nearly 72,660 have been injured.

During the past day, 85 people were killed, 130 were injured and an additional 25 died of starvation or thirst amid the catastrophic conditions in the strip, according to the authority. The figures cannot be verified independently.

Meanwhile, Israeli police detained 20 residents from the Arab-dominated eastern part of Jerusalem shortly before the start of Ramadan, they said earlier on Sunday.

The suspects, detained over the past two weeks, are accused of supporting or inciting terrorism. Many are still under investigation and charges have already been brought against some of them, the police said.

More incitement and fake news is being spread online to disrupt Ramadan and destabilize the region, they said.

Ramadan is a particularly holy period for Muslims and this year is set to begin on Monday. Tensions in Israel and the occupied Palestinian Territories are soaring this year due to the war in Gaza.

Further conflict is expected in the occupied West Bank and around the holy sites in the Old City of Jerusalem during Ramadan.

Israeli foreign intelligence service Mossad says Palestinian Islamist Hamas in Gaza is trying to "set the region on fire" during Ramadan.

Washington has been pressing for a ceasefire by the start of Ramadan and the release of hostages but despite weeks of efforts, the talks have been deadlocked for days.

Israeli police say they want to "enable the safe observance of Ramadan prayers on the Temple Mount and at the same time ensure security in the area."

In Israel, 13 people suspected of planning terrorist attacks in the country were also to be indicted on Sunday. Most come from the Arab-dominated town of Sakhnin in the north of the country, Israel's police and domestic intelligence service Shin Bet said on Sunday.

One member of the group had contacts with Hamas in the Gaza Strip and received instructions from the Islamist group to promote "terrorist activities." Security officials also seized weapons and ammunition from the group, which they said came from the West Bank. A Palestinian was also detained on suspicion of arms trafficking.