US President Joe Biden has scaled again the standard Ramadan occasion on the White Home amid tensions over his help for Israel’s offensive in Gaza, officers stated on Tuesday.
Muslim leaders will meet with Biden “to debate problems with curiosity to the neighborhood” however requested for no Lenten dinner, referred to as iftar, press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre stated.
As a substitute, Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris will host a small prayer and iftar after the assembly with a number of senior Muslim authorities officers, Jean-Pierre informed a each day briefing.
US media reported that some Muslim teams had rejected invites to a Ramadan dinner, saying it was insulting to take action amid the specter of famine in Gaza.
“Neighborhood leaders expressed a choice for a gathering, a working group assembly,” Jean-Pierre stated. “We listened, we heard, and we adjusted the format to be responsive.”
Biden has confronted protests and rising home anger for offering key US ally Israel with navy assist for its offensive within the Gaza Strip following Hamas’s Oct. 7 assaults on Israel.
With the Palestinian loss of life toll rising and assist solely trickling into Gaza, Democrats worry the problem may damage Biden’s probabilities for re-election in November.
Biden has not too long ago elevated strain on Israel to cut back civilian casualties, with america angering its ally final week by abstaining from a UN Safety Council decision calling for a right away ceasefire, leaving the settlement may very well be adopted.
Yearly since Invoice Clinton’s administration, the White Home has hosted an occasion to mark the Eid al-Fitr vacation — which ends the fasting month of Ramadan — or a meal that breaks the quick from daybreak to nightfall.
Biden has adopted custom to date.
The one US president not to take action was Donald Trump, who had a historical past of anti-Muslim rhetoric and issued a ban on vacationers from a number of predominantly Muslim nations.
