Biden says a Palestinian state should be established and Hamas eliminated entirely
Manuel Balce Ceneta/AP Photo
- President Joe Biden called Hamas' attacks on Israel "pure barbarism" in a 60 Minutes interview.
- He said the group needed to be eliminated while also calling for a Palestinian state.
- Biden cited the two-state solution but acknowledged there's no path for that right now.
President Joe Biden on Sunday said Hamas should be eliminated entirely while also calling for a path to establish a Palestinian state.
During a 60 Minutes interview that aired Sunday, Biden reaffirmed his denunciation of Hamas' surprise attack on Israel that occurred on October 7. The death toll has reached about 1,400 people as of Sunday, according to Israel's Prime Minister's office.
"We have to communicate to the world: This is critical. This is not even human behavior. It's pure barbarism," Biden said.
The president also said Hamas should be eradicated after 60 Minutes correspondent Scott Pelley asked if he believed the group should be "eliminated entirely."
"Yes, I do," Biden said in response. "But there needs to be a Palestinian authority. There needs to be a path to a Palestinian state."
The president brought up the "two-state solution" — a proposal that envisions two independent states for Israel and Palestine.
However, Biden acknowledged that Israel would not be open to the solution after last week's attacks, adding that he believed Israel "understands that a significant portion of Palestinian people do not share the views of Hamas and Hezbollah," a Shiite Muslim political party and military group in Lebanon.