WATCH | Biden mixes up Rafah with Israeli city Haifa, says 'don’t move...'

US President Joe Biden, known for occasional verbal gaffes, including misstatements or slips of the tongue that often attract media attention, has made yet another error - this time of a historic proportion that has triggered scrutiny of whether he be able to lead the country, if elected in office once again. This comes during an interview with Reshad Hudson from Nexstar Media, where President Biden mistakenly referred to the Israeli city of Haifa as Rafah, a city in Gaza.

When discussing his approach to appealing to pro-Palestinian voters post-Israel-Hamas conflict, Biden said, "I've been meeting with them, number one.

"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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He then added, "And I made it clear to Israelis – don’t move on Haifa." The intended reference was to Rafah, a city located in the southern Gaza Strip, bordering Egypt and also a major crossing point.

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Biden confused Rafah with Haifa, a city in Israel situated on the Mediterranean coast in the northern part of the country and a major industrial, and cultural hub.

Right after Biden made the blunder, the US president seemed lost and trailed off while saying, "It’s just not, I mean, anyway."Biden's gaffe triggered social media reactions with some interpreting the mistake as a sign of cognitive decline.

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Former US Ambassador to Israel David Friedman wrote on X,“I think Israel should accommodate Biden’s demand not to attack Haifa." Moreover, former New York state Assemblyman Dov Hikind wrote, “Think there’s strong likelihood Israel refrains from hitting Haifa."

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Rafah is a major point of contention between Israel and the US as Washington continues its pressure against the invasion of the Gazan city.

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The Israeli PM while promising to completely eliminate the Hamas battalions, including in Rafah, had said earlier that"there is no force in the world that will stop us."

"Many forces are trying to do this, but it will not help, because this enemy, after what it has done, will not do it again. It will cease to exist," he had added.

The situation is quite delicate as the city is currently holding more than one million Palestinian refugees and is believed to be where four of the remaining six Hamas battalions are operating.

(With inputs from agencies)