2024-04-05 20:44
Source: Xinhuanet
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Beijing, April 5 (Xinhua) -- According to a statement published on the website of the White House on April 4, US President Joseph Biden said in a phone call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on April 4 that Israel needs to take practical measures to protect the safety of civilians and humanitarian aid workers in the Palestinian Gaza Strip, and the United States will formulate policies related to the Gaza Strip in accordance with Israel's actions.
Some US media said that this is the first time since the outbreak of the new round of Palestinian-Israeli conflict that Biden has put pressure on Israel on the condition that the United States is aiding Israel. However, some people have doubts about whether the United States will "move seriously" against Israel, believing that Biden's remarks are only to dissipate the pressure of public opinion and cater to the needs of the election.
Palestinians inspect destroyed cars after an airstrike in Deir al-Bairah in the central Gaza Strip on 2 April. The Palestine Red Crescent Society issued a statement on the 2nd, saying that the Israeli army attacked the central city of Deir al-Bairah in the central Gaza Strip on the evening of the 1st, killing seven staff members of the charity organization "World Central Kitchen". Xinhua News Agency (Photo by Yasser Cudi)
Biden's harsh words?
The White House issued a statement after the phone call between the leaders of the United States and Israel on the 4th, saying that Biden "stressed" that the attack on aid workers and the overall humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip are "unacceptable". He called on Israel to "announce and implement a series of concrete, practical and measurable measures" to reduce the harm caused by Israeli military operations to civilians in the Gaza Strip, mitigate the humanitarian catastrophe and ensure the safety of aid workers.
People inspect buildings after an Israeli airstrike in the central Gaza Strip city of Deir el-Ballah on April 2. Xinhua News Agency
Biden said that the U.S. side will assess the situation of the Israeli side "taking immediate action in accordance with these measures" and then decide on policies related to the Gaza Strip.
According to the White House statement, Biden stressed that an "immediate ceasefire" is "critical" to stabilize and improve the humanitarian situation in Gaza and protect civilians. He urged Israel and the Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) to reach an agreement as soon as possible to release the detainees.
The Associated Press reported that the call, which lasted about 30 minutes, was the first time Biden threatened the Israeli side that if it did not change its strategy toward Gaza, the United States would reconsider its support for Israel.
The Israeli army attacked the aid convoy of the charity "World Central Kitchen" in the Gaza Strip on the 1st, resulting in the death of seven people, including a number of Westerners, one of whom has dual citizenship of the United States and Canada. The air raid was strongly condemned by public opinion. Biden said on the 2nd that the Israeli airstrike made him "angry and heartbroken" and that this incident "should not happen at all".
Election needs?
According to the White House statement, Biden repeatedly mentioned "civilians" in Gaza during the call. However, it has been nearly half a year since the outbreak of the new round of Palestinian-Israeli conflict, and Israel's military operation in the Gaza Strip has killed more than 33,000 people and injured more than 75,000.
Israel is a traditional "hardcore" ally of the United States in the Middle East, and the United States provides a large amount of military aid to Israel every year. After the outbreak of a new round of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict in October last year, the United States gave political and military support to Israel. Since then, the conflict has dragged on, with a surge in casualties in Gaza, a deterioration in the humanitarian situation, and an international outcry.
On 2 April, in Deir al-Ballah, in the central Gaza Strip, Palestinians inspect destroyed cars after an airstrike. Xinhua News Agency (Photo by Yasser Cudi)
In the United States, as the US presidential election scheduled for November approaches, voter groups such as Arabs continue to put pressure on Biden. According to the results of a poll released by Gallup on March 27, 55 percent of Americans oppose Israel's military action in the Gaza Strip, nearly 20 percentage points above the proportion of supporters.
Within the Democratic Party, Biden also faces discontent, with some accusing him of hurting the Democratic Party's election with his response to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Republican presidential candidate and former President Donald Trump continued to slam his opponent on the Palestinian-Israeli issue in an interview with the media on the 4th, saying that Israel "has completely lost this public relations war."
Some pro-Biden politicians have urged him to use military aid to put pressure on Israel. "Now we've reached a tipping point [with military aid]," Senator Chris Koons, a Democrat, told CNN. Koons said that once the Israeli army launched a ground offensive against the Gaza Strip city of Rafah, "I would vote for conditions on aid to Israel."
Nice "double reed"?
Many people believe that since the White House did not explain what kind of changes might occur in the US policy toward Israel if Israel does not take measures, it is very likely that this kind of verbal "diplomatic threat" is only to make the "double reed" more beautiful.
People inspect buildings in the southern Gaza Strip city of Rafah on April 2 after an Israeli airstrike. Xinhua News Agency (photo by Khalid Omar)
The Wall Street Journal reported on 29 March that the US Government has approved the supply of weapons and equipment to Israel in the past two weeks, including F-35A fighter jets and more than 2,000 bombs. After the Israeli army airraided the aid convoy on the 1st, the White House said that it would continue to support Israel's "right to self-defense" and would not stop military aid. Biden also told Netanyahu in the phone call on the 4th that the United States will continue to "strongly support" Israel in responding to the "threat" from Iran.
Benjamin Rhodes, former deputy assistant to the President of the United States for national security affairs, recently posted on social media, urging Biden not to always "thunder loud and rain small" on the Palestinian-Israeli issue. "Anger doesn't help unless there are substantial consequences. Netanyahu doesn't care what the United States says, only what the United States does. ”
Either way, after Biden's phone call with Netanyahu, Israel quickly responded to Biden's "concerns."
The Israeli Prime Minister's Office issued a statement on the 5th, saying that in order to allow the Gaza Strip to receive more aid supplies, Israel will temporarily reopen the northern Erez crossing, and allow the southern port city of Ashdod to handle supplies aiding Gaza, and at the same time increase the passage of aid from Jordan through the Kerem Shalom port. However, the statement did not specify the amount and type of aid allowed into the Gaza Strip. (Wang Yijun)