Biden suggests U.S. could condition military aid to Israel on its actions to address humanitarian crisis in Gaza

President Joe Biden told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday that Israel's strike that killed seven World Central Kitchen aid workers earlier this week and the overall humanitarian situation were "unacceptable" and issued a warning about the U.S. changing its policy toward Israel.

Biden "made clear the need for Israel to announce and implement a series of specific, concrete, and measurable steps to address civilian harm, humanitarian suffering, and the safety of aid workers," the White House said in a readout of the call.

More from NBC News:

RFK Jr. campaign says Jan. 6 'activists' have been 'stripped of their Constitutional liberties'

No Labels ends 2024 presidential efforts

World Central Kitchen aid worker's family calls for an independent probe into the deadly attack

Notably, Biden also "made clear that U.S. policy with respect to Gaza will be determined by our assessment of Israel's immediate action on these steps."

According to two U.S. officials, Biden strongly implied to Netanyahu that he could condition U.S. military aid to Israel on what it does to address humanitarian concerns in Gaza and get to a ceasefire as soon as possible.

"That was the message," one of the officials said.

Asked to elaborate on what that could amount to, National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters at the press briefing that he wouldn't preview specific steps that the U.S. might take.

"What we are looking to see and hope to see here in the coming hours and days is a dramatic increase in the humanitarian assistance getting [into Gaza], additional crossings opened up and a reduction in the violence against civilians and certainly aid workers," Kirby said, adding that they want to see Israel "take practical