On Sunday, Joe Biden, the President of the United States, ramped up his engagement with the continuing battle between Israel and the Palestinian militia group Hamas, convening a call with the leaders of Canada, France, Britain, Germany, and Italy, after talking with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The White House reported Biden’s calls with the Western leaders, Netanyahu and Pope Francis amid rising fears that the Israel-Hamas war could mushroom into a comprehensive Middle East clash as Israel attacked Gaza and clashes on its border with Lebanon intensified.
It was not immediately apparent why Biden’s call with the Western leaders did not include Japan. Together those nations form the Group of Seven advanced economies. G7 finance ministers met in Morocco earlier this month and issued a statement.
Biden called a virtual meeting of the G7 after Russia attacked Ukraine in February 2022.
The White House said that Biden and the Catholic leader discussed “the need to prevent escalation in the region and to work toward a durable peace in the Middle East.”
The Vatican earlier said the call “focused on conflict situations in the world and the need to identify paths to peace.”
