Biden held ‘direct,’ 30-minute call with Netanyahu, White House says

President Joe Biden held a “direct,” 30-minute phone call with his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday, their first conversation in almost two months and a chance to confer over Israel’s planned response to an Iranian ballistic missile attack.

President Joe Biden held a “direct,” 30-minute phone call with his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday, their first conversation in almost two months and a chance to confer over Israel’s planned response to an Iranian ballistic missile attack. “They discussed a range of issues,” press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said after the call ended, promising a more fulsome readout later Wednesday afternoon. She characterized the conversation as an extension of discussions between US and Israeli officials about Israel’s response to the Iranian attack, which Biden has said should be “proportional.” But otherwise, Jean-Pierre was tight-lipped about the phone call, which occurred midmorning. Vice President Kamala Harris joined the call from New York on a secure phone line. Harris declined to elaborate on the conversation in an interview with CNN earlier Wednesday, telling Dana Bash it was classified. Still, she acknowledged the significance of the conversation, the first between Biden and Netanyahu since August 21. “It was an important call,” she said.