Biden-Netanyahu Relationship Strained Like Never Before

May 10, 2024 5:11 am

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have long managed a complicated relationship. But now they find themselves running out of space to maneuver as their interests diverge and their political futures hang in the balance. Their ties have hit a low point this week: Biden confirmed he ordered the suspension of delivery of heavy bombs to Israel as Netanyahu resists White House pressure to scrap plans to move forward with a widescale operation in the southern Gaza city of Rafah. Netanyahu has grown increasingly resistant to Biden’s public charm offensives and private pleading, prompting the president’s more assertive pushback in the past several weeks.