Everyone shares some responsibility for the Hamas-Israel war, says former United States president Barack Obama, who has also questioned whether his administration could have done more to push for peace between Israel and Palestinians.
"If you want to solve the problem, then you have to take in the whole truth. And you then have to admit, nobody's hands are clean, that all of us are complicit to some degree," Obama said in an interview preview with Pod Save America, released on Sunday.
His administration sought, but ultimately failed to broker, a peace deal in negotiations between Israel and Palestinians.
In the interview excerpt, Obama says: "I look at this and I think back what could I have done during my presidency, to move this forward as hard as I tried, I've got the scars to prove it.
"But there's a part of me that still saying, 'Well, was there something else I could have done?'."
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He said Hamas' actions were "horrific", but "the occupation and what's happening to Palestinians is unbearable", and that these were two seemingly contradictory truths that needed to be acknowledged in order to "act constructively".
The interview comes after Obama released in October released a statement saying that while he supported President Joe Biden's decision to back Israel in its war against Hamas, it was important to "be clear that how Israel prosecutes this fight against Hamas matters".
"In particular, it matters — as President Biden has repeatedly emphasized — that Israel’s military strategy abides by international law, including those laws that seek to avoid, to every extent possible, the death or suffering of civilian populations," he said at the time.
Washington has maintained its robust support for Israel but has also began advocating for temporary humanitarian pauses to allow aid into Gaza. On Friday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rebuffed a pause proposal from US Secretary of State Antony Blinken after a day of meetings.
On Saturday, when asked by reporters if there was any progress on achieving a humanitarian pause, US President Joe Biden said "Yes" and gave a thumbs-up as he departed a church in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware.
Israel has bombarded Gaza since Hamas' 7 October attack in which more than 1,400 people were killed, according to the Israeli government, and over 200 hostages taken.
More than 9,770 people have been killed in Gaza since 7 October, according to the health ministry in Hamas-controlled Gaza.
Hamas is a Palestinian military and political group, which has gained power in the Gaza Strip since winning legislative elections there in 2006. Its stated aim is to establish a Palestinian state, while refusing to recognise Israel's right to exist.
Hamas, in its entirety, is designated as a terrorist organisation by countries including Australia, Canada, the UK and the US. New Zealand and Paraguay list only its military wing as a terrorist group. In 2018, the United Nations General Assembly voted against a resolution condemning Hamas in its entirety as a terrorist organisation.
Obama's full interview with Pod Save America, hosted by aides of the former US president, is expected to be released on Tuesday.
- With Reuters.
