Biden Confirms Israeli Discovery of Bodies in Gaza
U.S. President Joe Biden said his staff was in contact with the Israelis and confirmed that they have discovered bodies in Gaza.
“There's a lot of speculation of who they are, the names. I'm not at liberty to do that at this moment until the families are notified,” Biden told reporters after attending mass at St. Edmonds Catholic Church in Rehoboth, Delaware.
“My staff has been in contact with the Israelis. They’ve discovered bodies in Gaza. I'm not sure of the exact number. They haven't taken them out yet. And in the meantime and in the meantime, they want to identify the bodies. There's a lot of speculation of who they are, the names, and I'm not at liberty to do that at this moment until the families are notified. And it’s time for this war to end, we should end this war. I think we're on the verge of having an agreement and it’s just time to end it. It’s time to finish it,” Biden added.
Israel said it has discovered a number of bodies in Gaza during combat, and that its military was carrying out a process to extract and identify the bodies, which will take several hours.
Meanwhile thousands of demonstrators gathered at New York City’s Central Park's Upper West Side to pay tribute to six Israeli hostages killed in Gaza and to call for the return of others still held captive.
The event featured speeches from relatives of hostages, including the father of slain Israeli-American Hersh Goldberg-Polin, who called on U.S. President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to secure a ceasefire deal with Hamas and the release of the remaining hostages.
Participants held aloft photographs of the hostages and banners with messages such as "Bring Our Children Home".
This event occurred just days after the bodies of the six hostages were found in Gaza, a discovery that has intensified public outcry both in Israel and abroad, particularly against the backdrop of ongoing military operations in Gaza, and the fraught negotiations for the hostages' release.
