US president warns Israeli PM to protect civilians or face consequences
U.S. President Biden gives Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu an ultimatum to protect civilians in Gaza; otherwise, Israel could lose American support
On Thursday, U.S. President Joe Biden, the staunchest ally of Israel, conveyed to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that the overall humanitarian situation in Gaza is unacceptable.
He warned Israel to take steps to address the crisis or face consequences. This marked a stark statement from Israel’s strongest ally.
Despite occasional disagreements during the call between Biden and Netanyahu, which is common among two leaders with decades of acquaintance, there was no indication of any confrontational exchange, as per the official’s remarks describing the conversation as “direct.”
The official also mentioned that there are currently no plans for a follow-up call between the two leaders.
The WCK stated that 7 of its workers, including a Palestinian driver, were killed by a sustained drone barrage against their marked convoy, after unloading 100 tonnes of food aid from a barge on April 1.
The 30-minute conversation between the two leaders was their first phone call since an Israeli strike killed seven aid workers from the World Central Kitchen in Gaza.
The fatalities have ignited a storm of anger within the White House, with Biden said to have reached a new level of exasperation regarding Israel’s campaign.
World Central Kitchen, founded by restauranteur Jose Andres to provide immediate food relief to disaster-stricken areas, called for an independent investigation into the Israeli strikes that killed seven of the group’s staff members, including an American citizen.
However, the White House has said the U.S. has no plans to conduct its own investigation.
US policy toward Gaza hinges on Israel’s immediate actions
“President Biden emphasized that the strikes on humanitarian workers and the overall humanitarian situation are unacceptable,” the White House said in a statement shortly after the call wrapped. “He made clear that US policy with respect to Gaza will be determined by our assessment of Israel’s immediate action on these steps.”
Administration officials described the conversation as “direct” and “honest.”
Biden said Israel needed to “announce and implement a series of specific, concrete, and measurable steps to address civilian harm, humanitarian suffering, and the safety of aid workers.”
Biden also told Netanyahu that reaching an “immediate cease-fire” in exchange for the estimated 100 hostages that are still being held in Gaza was “essential” and urged Israel to reach such an accord “without delay,” according to the White House.
Israel allows aid trucks into Gaza within hours of call
During the phone conversation, Netanyahu told his American counterpart that the Israel Defense Forces bore responsibility for the deaths of the seven aid workers from the World Central Kitchen earlier in the week.
He assured Biden that the Israeli government was planning to announce measures aimed at preventing such incidents from occurring again, as reported by a senior administration official.
Netanyahu informed Biden of Israel’s commitment to enhancing the tracking of non-profit workers within Gaza, a step which Biden affirmed as necessary, according to the official. Additionally, Netanyahu pledged during the call that Israel would imminently declare the reopening of humanitarian crossings and implement procedural changes to mitigate harm to civilians.
Erez crossing, which has historically been the sole passenger terminal for individuals entering and leaving Gaza, will be temporarily reopened. Furthermore, Israel will facilitate the use of its Ashdod port for processing aid shipments destined for Gaza and will allow increased Jordanian aid shipments through another land crossing.
‘If we don’t see changes, there’ll be changes in our own policy’
White House National Security Council spokesperson Adrienne Watson welcomed the moves by Netanyahu, adding that the plan “must now be fully and rapidly implemented.”
Speaking in Brussels after the call, Secretary of State Antony Blinken made the stakes clear: “If we don’t see the changes that we need to see, there’ll be changes in our own policy,” he said.
The White House would not specify what could change about U.S. policy, but it could include altering military sales to Israel and America’s diplomatic backup on the world stage.
White House national security spokesperson John Kirby echoed the call for “tangible” and “concrete” changes to be taken by the Israelis beyond reiterating long-stated calls for allowing additional aid to get into Gaza.
“If there’s no changes to their policy in their approaches, then there’s going to have to be changes to ours. There are things that need to be done. There are too many civilians being killed.” Kirby said
Biden’s Israel support raises election challenges
The call amounts to perhaps the most serious sign of Biden’s frustration with Israel’s campaign in Gaza, which was launched in the wake of the Oct. 7 attacks by Hamas. The war has become one of Biden’s chief domestic political problems ahead of November’s election as key parts of his voter coalition have been outraged by the president’s support for Israel’s war.
Protests have popped up at nearly every public event the president has held outside the White House in recent months.
The demands for Israel to bring the conflict to a swift close were increasing across the political spectrum, with former President Donald Trump, the Republican candidate to face Biden this fall, saying that Israel was “absolutely losing the PR war” and calling for a resolution to the bloodshed.
“Get it over with and let’s get back to peace and stop killing people. And that’s a very simple statement,” Trump stated.
“Israel is not Hamas. Israel is a democracy, Hamas is a terrorist organization. And democracies place the highest value on human life – every human life.” Blinken said.
Israel has acknowledged responsibility for the strikes but said the convoy was not targeted and the workers’ deaths were not intentional. Blinken acknowledged the World Central Kitchen strike was not the first time Israel has killed aid workers in the conflict.
“It must be the last,” he said.
Iranian threats after embassy attack in Damascus
Kirby stated that Biden and Netanyahu also addressed Iranian threats against Israel.
Earlier this week, Iranian leaders vowed to hit back after an airstrike widely blamed on Israel destroyed Iran’s Consulate in Syria, killing 12 people, including two elite Iranian generals. Iran’s President Ebrahim Raisi said Wednesday the attack “will not remain without answer.”
On Thursday, the Israeli public broadcaster KAN quoted the Israeli official, without mentioning his name, as saying they are prepared for a retaliatory response over the Damascus airstrike, but it won’t lead to a wider escalation. KAN noted that the Israeli air defense platforms, intelligence and government offices across Israel are on high alert.
In contradictory move, US approves $18B sale of F-15 fighter jets
Biden also renewed his concerns about Netanyahu’s plan to carry out an operation in the southern city of Rafah, where about 1.5 million displaced Palestinians are sheltering, as Israel looks to eliminate Hamas following the militant group’s deadly Oct. 7 attack.
However, Biden is set to authorize an $18 billion sale of fighter jets from the United States and Israel, and the administration recently authorized the transfer to Israel of over 1,000 500-pound bombs and over 1,000 small-diameter bombs.
Kirby defended the arms sale and transfers as the product of yearslong processes.
“With the exception of the immediate two months after the attack, we haven’t really sent emergency aid and military assistance to Israel. What you’re seeing here is the result of a process of foreign military sales to Israel that takes years,” Kirby said.
Source: Newsroom
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