Biden welcomes ceasefire in Israel, calls for investigation into civilian casualties

President Joe Biden welcomed a ceasefire reached between Israel and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad terrorist group in Gaza on Sunday night.

Biden said in a statement, "Over these last 72 hours, the United States has worked with officials from Israel, the Palestinian Authority, Egypt, Qatar, Jordan, and others throughout the region to encourage a swift resolution to the conflict."

"My support for Israel’s security is long-standing and unwavering—including its right to defend itself against attacks," Biden added. "Over these recent days, Israel has defended its people from indiscriminate rocket attacks launched by the terrorist group Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and the United States is proud of our support for Israel’s Iron-Dome, which intercepted hundreds of rockets and saved countless lives."

Biden commended interim Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid and his government for their leadership during Operation Breaking Dawn but also called for an investigation into civilian casualties reported during the operation.

According to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), the five people including children who were killed in the al-Fallujah neighborhood of Jabaliya was the result of a misfired Palestinian Islamic Jihad rocket.

In another incident, three Gazans were reportedly killed by Islamic Jihad misfired rockets in the Buraj camp, and on Saturday, four children were killed in Jabaliya when a rocket also misfired according to the Jerusalem Post.

Video and images documenting the rockets falling in Gaza after being fired from civilian areas in the territory on Sunday night, including of a rocket misfire into Jabaliya, were released by the IDF.

Speaking on Fox News Live on Sunday, former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called out the "Palestinian propaganda machine," saying it has been "caught red-handed" after the IDF released the footage. The former prime minister argued that Israel must "puncture" the "lies" coming from Palestinians.

"They said that we in Israel killed five children. They didn’t tell you the truth and this was caught on a video."

Biden said civilian casualties in Gaza are "a tragedy," whether they were caused by Israeli strikes or Islamic Jihad rockets that fell within the Gaza Strip.

"My Administration supports a timely and thorough investigation into all of these reports, and we also call on all parties to fully implement the ceasefire, and to ensure fuel and humanitarian supplies are flowing into Gaza as the fighting subsides."

Biden continued, "As I made clear during my recent trip to Israel and the West Bank, Israelis and Palestinians both deserve to live safely and securely and to enjoy equal measures of freedom, prosperity, and democracy. My Administration will remain engaged with Israeli and Palestinian leaders to support that vision and to implement the initiatives launched during my visit to improve the quality of life for Palestinians and Israelis alike."

Last Monday night, Israel arrested Palestinian Islamic Jihad terrorist leader Bassam al-Saadi in Jenin, a focal point of Palestinian terrorist activity, after reports signaled that the terrorist group was planning an attack on Israelis living near Gaza, forcing residents into hiding.

On Friday, the IDF killed Tayseer al-Jabari, a senior Islamic Jihad terrorist commander who supervised terrorist forces and was suspected of planning a terrorist response to the arrest of Saadi. According to the IDF, "Jabari was responsible for multiple terrorist attacks against Israeli civilians."

The IDF then announced Operation "Breaking Dawn" to attack Palestinian Islamic Jihad terrorists inside the Gaza Strip.

Palestinian Islamic Jihad terrorists then began launching hundreds of Iranian-supplied rockets at civilian targets in Israel, some even targeting Jerusalem, many of which were taken out by Iron Dome batteries.

Khaled Mansour, a second senior commander of Palestinian Islamic Jihad was killed in a targeted attack on Saturday. During the operation, the entire command structure of Palestinian Islamic Jihad was taken out in targeted strikes.

Egyptian intelligence officials brokered a cease-fire to begin Sunday night. However, rockets were fired toward Israeli communities near the Gaza border on Sunday evening just eight minutes after the ceasefire began. No group has claimed responsibility for the attack.

More civilians in Gaza were killed by failed Islamic Jihad rockets than by Israeli airstrikes during the operation according to a briefing by IDF spokesman Brig.-Gen. Ran Kochav.