US President Joe Biden has spoken with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and expressed his view that a two-state solution between Israel and Palestine is desirable to achieve peace.

The White House said the two leaders talked on the phone on Friday for the first time since December 23. They discussed the situation in the Gaza Strip, where an Israeli offensive against the Islamic group Hamas is leading to a growing number of civilian casualties.

Biden mentioned Israel's responsibility to reduce civilian harm and protect the innocent even as it maintains military pressure on Hamas.

The White House said the president also discussed "his vision for a more durable peace and security for Israel fully integrated within the region and a two-state solution with Israel's security guaranteed."

Netanyahu expressed a negative view toward the two-state solution at a news conference on Thursday.

Biden told reporters after the talks that "there are a number of types of two-state solutions," saying, "I think there's ways in which this could work."

White House National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said in a news conference there is no change to Biden's view that the best long-term solution for the security of the Israeli people is "a free and independent Palestinian state."