President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke on Monday, their first interaction in more than a month, as the divide has grown between allies over food crisis in Gaza, conduct of war, according to the White House.

The call comes after Republicans in Washington and Israeli officials expressed outrage after Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer sharply criticized Netanyahu’s handling of the war in Gaza and called for Israel to hold new elections. They accused the Democratic leader of breaking the unwritten rule against interfering in a close ally’s electoral politics.

Biden hasn’t endorsed Schumer’s call for election but said he thought he gave a “good speech” that reflected the concerns of many Americans.

The White House has been skeptical of Netanyahu’s plan of carrying out an operation in the southern city of Rafah, to which more than a 1 million displaced Palestinians have fled, as Israel looks to eliminate Hamas following Hamas’ deadly Oct. 7 attack. Biden administration officials have warned that they would not support such an operation without the Israelis presenting a credible plan to ensure the safety of innocent Palestinian civilians.

Israel has yet to present such a plan, according to White House officials.

Netanyahu lashed out against the American criticism on Sunday, describing calls for a new election as “wholly inappropriate.”

Netanyahu told Fox News Channel that Israel never would have called for a new U.S. election after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, and he denounced Schumer’s comments as inappropriate.

“We’re not a banana republic,” he said. “The people of Israel will choose when they will have elections, and who they’ll elect, and it’s not something that will be foisted on us.”

(AP)