Biden is heckled by rabbi at Minneapolis fundraiser who demands 'ceasefire ... trends now
President Joe Biden was heckled by a rabbi protester at a closed Minneapolis where he defended his own efforts to tamp down Israel as it wages war on Gaza.
‘As a rabbi I need you to call for a ceasefire right now,’ yelled Rabbi Jessica Rosenberg, whose website calls her a ‘Reconstructionist’ rabbi. She interrupted Biden as he was speaking about the origins of campaign and a the ‘antisemitic bile’ at a right wing march in Charlottesville. After the interruption, the rabbi was removed from the room where Biden was addressing about 200 donors inside a warehouse event space.
‘I think we need a pause. A pause means give time to get the prisoners out,’ Biden said, in his most full-throated call for a ‘humanitarian pause,’ which his administration distinguishes from a broader cease fire that pro-Palestinian protesters are demanding.
Biden then took credit for tempering Israel President Benjamin Netanyahu. ‘I’m the guy that convinced Bibi to call for a ceasefire to let the prisoners out. I’m the guy that talked to [Egyptian President] Sisi to convince him to open the door.
As the protester was removed, she identified herself to DailyMail.com. She chanted ‘ceasefire now.’
The audience cheered Biden’s answer and booed the protester. ‘I understand the emotion,’ Biden told his supporters.
President Joe Biden was heckled by a rabbi at a closed fundraiser demanding a ceasefire as Israel wages war on Hamas. He traveled to Minnesota Wednesday and addressed Palestinian suffering in Gaza and had a message for Israeli forces, urging them to act in a 'manner consistent with international and humanitarian law'
The protester identified herself to DailyMail.com as Jessica Rosenberg
President Joe Biden spoke to the ‘devastating’ images he has seen of children crying for their parents in Gaza Wednesday, in one of his most emotive warnings cautioning Israel amid its assault on the territory.
He made the comment after the Israel Defense Forces struck a refugee camp for the second day in a row, in a bombing the government said took out a leading Hamas terror target.
His administration has repeatedly spoken publicly about the importance of following the ‘rules of war,’ while refusing to respond to individual incidents or tell Israel how to conduct the war following the October 7 Hamas terror attack, even while preparing to send billions in new military aid to the U.S. ally.
‘We're going to continue to affirm that Israel has right to – and responsibility – to defend citizens from terror and needs to do so in a manner consistent with international and humanitarian law, but that prioritizes the protection of citizens,’ Biden said.
Then he continued to describe some of the wrenching scenes coming out of Gaza, just weeks after 1,400 Israelis were killed during the Hamas attack.
‘We've seen the devastating images from Gaza. Palestinian children crying out for lost parents and parents reasoning and writing their children's names on their hands and legs to be identified.’
Then, a child in the crowd inside a barn at the Dutch Creek Farms in Northfield, Minnesota let out cry of her own.
‘It’s okay. Kids are allowed to do that. Don't worry about it,’ Biden joked.
He then asked if it was a boy or a girl who issued the cry. ‘I don't blame her,’ he quipped, getting a laugh even amid the dark news.
Biden also spoke about the breakthrough in negotiations to finally get some dual citizens out of Gaza, after the White House said a 'handful' of Americans were among those who got out Wednesday as part of a broader deal.
'This is a result of intense and urgent American diplomacy with our partners in the region,' Biden said. 'I personally spent a lot of time speaking with the Prime Minister Netanyahu of Israel and President Sisi of Egypt and others to make sure that we could open this access for people to get out,' he said.
He made the comment after the Israel Defense Forces struck a refugee camp for the second day in a row, in a bombing the government said took out a leading Hamas terror target
He thanked partners in the region and singled out Qatar for working 'closely with us' in the talks. Qatar has provided financial support to Hamas and hosts former Hamas leaders.
'At the same time, we're continuing to work to significantly step up the flow of critical humanitarian assistance in Gaza,' Biden said, referencing an earlier breakthrough to get busloads of humanitarian aid into Gaza.
That comes after Israel has cut water and energy amid the start of its incursions into the territory, where Israeli troops are vulnerable to Hamas fighters and a network of miles of underground tunnels.
En route to Minnesota, national security spokesman John Kirby called the deal an 'important first step' and a 'significant breakthrough'
