Biden speaks with Netanyahu amid fallout of strike that killed aid workers

President Biden spoke Thursday with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, their first conversation since an Israeli drone strike killed several humanitarian workers in Gaza.

The White House said the two held a call “to discuss the latest developments in Israel and Gaza.” A readout of the call was expected to follow.

The conversation was expected to be tense in the aftermath of the strike that killed aid workers from World Central Kitchen, a charity group that was working to distribute food in Gaza.

Biden and other White House officials have expressed outrage over the strike, which was the latest instance of humanitarian workers or civilians being killed in Gaza.

Thousands of Palestinians have died since the start of the Israel-Hamas war in October, leading to increasing outcry from activists and some Democrats to put conditions on U.S. military aid for Israel.

But White House officials have signaled there will be no change to their policy toward Israel in the wake of the latest incident.

“They’re still under a viable threat of Hamas,” national security communications adviser John Kirby said Tuesday. “We’re still going to make sure they can defend themselves and the 7th of October doesn’t happen again. That doesn’t mean that it’s a free pass that we look the other way when something like this happens.”

Updated at 1:32 p.m.