Israel-Hamas War: I’m disappointed in myself’
US President Joe Biden has privately apologized to a group of American Muslims for casting “excessive skepticism” over the Palestinian death toll released by the Hamas-run Health Ministry.
The 81-year-old president met with five community figures who were furious with his comment after he publicly rejected the Palestinian death toll on October 25. One person who organized the meeting said the process was a ‘shit show’.
At the White House press conference, Biden said: “I have no idea that the Palestinians are telling the truth about how many people are killed.”
The next day, October 26, Biden had heated arguments with five public figures in the community who were outraged by his comments. The group’s comings and goings exceeded Biden’s scheduled time by 30 minutes.
All five participants were handpicked by the White House.
The guest list included, according to the Washington Post: Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, Rami Nashashibi of Chicago, interfaith leader Imam Mohamed Magid, Muslim lobbyist Wa’el Alzayat and health care advocate Suzanne Barakat.
One person involved in the negotiations told the Post: ‘Why are you sitting down with him without any agreement that he will withdraw that statement and apologize?
‘Which seat at the table are you negotiating, the toilet seat?’
One participant, speaking to the Post, said the objective was to pressure Biden on the ceasefire issue. Guests were “furious” that Biden was debating mortality data just a day earlier – instead of accepting that thousands of people were being killed in Gaza.
Because Hamas, the terrorist organization that massacred 1,300 Israelis, is the body that releases the death toll in Gaza, the numbers were approached cautiously at the start of the conflict.
All five present at Biden’s meeting said they knew people who had been affected by the ordeal in Gaza.
One of the people present said he had lost 100 members of his family.
It was at this point that Biden reportedly apologized for his words and actions.
He reportedly told them, ‘I’m sorry. I’m disappointed in myself. I will do better.
One attendee told the Post: “We said, ‘Palestinians are dying. We do not agree that the death toll should be disputed.
The president ended up hugging one of the participants and promised to ‘do better’.
Keith Ellison, who was one of five in attendance, told the Washington Post: “Muslim community leaders told President Biden that the suffering of innocent Gazans trying to survive in extremely difficult circumstances has actually increased the likelihood of Islamophobic attacks in the United States. United.
‘The President listened carefully, responded sincerely and showed empathy and compassion for everyone’s suffering. I’m hopeful he will act on that empathy.
Biden and his officials have been meeting with various Muslim, Palestinian and Arab-American groups in recent weeks as the conflict in the Middle East continues to divide public opinion.
Source: www.lindaikejisblog.com