President Biden says there is “every reason” for people to conclude that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is prolonging the war in Gaza for his political preservation.

Mr. Biden, speaking to Time magazine, initially said he was “not going to comment on that” assertion.

But he also said, “There is every reason for people to draw that conclusion.”

Mr. Biden suggested an internal debate in Israel over a proposed judicial overhaul may have influenced Mr. Netanyahu’s approach to the war. A debate over judicial changes roiled Mr. Biden’s relationship with Israel before the terror raids last Oct. 7 on Israel by Hamas militants.

“Whether he would change his position or not, it’s hard to say, but it has not been helpful,” Mr. Biden said.

The president was reluctant to blame Mr. Netanyahu for intelligence failures before the Oct. 7 raids that killed about 1,200 people in southern Israel.

“He wasn’t the only one that didn’t pick it up,” Mr. Biden said.

Mr. Netanyahu has faced international criticism for his handling of the war on Hamas in Gaza. Thousands of Palestinian civilians have died in the conflict and there is widespread hunger. Aid workers have also been killed in the fighting.

Mr. Biden said his main rift with Mr. Netanyahu is over what happens after the war.

“My major disagreement with Netanyahu is, what happens after, what happens after Gaza’s over? What, what does it go back to?” Mr. Biden said. “There needs to be a two-state solution, a transition to a two-state solution. And that’s my biggest disagreement with Bibi Netanyahu.”

• Tom Howell Jr. can be reached at thowell@washingtontimes.com.