18 April 2024 , 07:34
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Fresh concerns are growing over Joe Biden's mental state after he made a "seriously embarrassing" blunder during an interview over the Gaza war.
The 81-year-old made the worrying gaffe during a one-on-one interview with Nexstar Media’s Reshad Hudson after he was asked how he was going to win back pro-Palestine votes following the war in Israel.
However, he bizarrely confused the Israeli port city of Haifa with the last refuge for civilians in the Gaza Strip - Rafah.
“I’ve been meeting with them, number one,” President Biden said. “Number two, I made it clear that we have to vastly increase the amount of food, water, and healthcare going into Gaza.”
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A confused Joe Biden made a 'seriously embarrassing' error during an interview over the Gaza war“And I made it clear to Israelis – don’t move on Haifa,” he added, apparently meaning to say Rafah." “It’s just not, I mean, anyway,” Biden added.
In the last few weeks, Rafah has become crucial in Israel’s efforts to free Hamas-held hostages and get rid of the terrorist group's presence in the Gaza Strip.
President Biden appeared to confuse the Israeli port city of Haifa with the last refuge for civilians in the Gaza Strip (Anadolu via Getty Images)Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has promised that "no force in the world " will prevent the Israeli Defence Forces from advancing into Rafa, which now houses over 1 million Palestinians. Rafah is said to be the operating site of four of the remaining six Hamas battalions. Haifa, Israel’s third-largest city, is more than 100 miles north of Rafah.
Biden's confused comments were largely mocked on social media. “I think Israel should accommodate Biden’s demand not to attack Haifa,” former US Ambassador to Israel David Friedman wrote on Twitter.
Meanwhile, former New York state Assemblyman Dov Hikind tweeted:“Think there’s strong likelihood Israel refrains from hitting Haifa,” before adding the gaffe was “seriously embarrassing.”
The president's comments come as 86% of American voters believe Biden, who is already the oldest president in US history, is too old for the role amid concerns over his cognitive state.
The president made the mix-up of Rafah (AFP via Getty Images)Biden, who would be 86 at the end of a potential second term if re-elected in November, has made a series of errors but the White House has tried to play them down. They previously hit back at suggestions his memory was a concern in February following his handling of classified documents.
The US president used an address to express his fury towards special counsel Robert Hur's report that highlighted the president's "significantly limited" memory.
"My memory is fine," he insisted in a White House briefing. Biden gave an emotional response to a claim he could not recollect when his son died, saying: "How the hell dare he raise that?"
He added: "Frankly when I was asked the question, I thought to myself, was none of their damn business," he said. "I don't need anyone to remind me when he [Beau Biden] passed away."
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The inquiry found Biden "wilfully retained and disclosed" classified files but decided not to charge him. The prosecutor said he chose not to bring criminal charges following a 15-month investigation because Biden cooperated and would likely be difficult to convict.
"We have considered that, at trial, Mr Biden would likely present himself to a jury, as he did during our interview of him, as a sympathetic, well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory," he wrote in a report.