As the war went on, US–Israel relations began to become strained.[12][13] The US government became more critical of Israel and its stance slowly began to change as Palestinian civilian casualties rose and opposition grew. In February, the Biden administration issued a national security directive requiring written assurances from Israel that it was using US-supplied weapons in line with international law. In March, the US began calling for an immediate and sustained ceasefire linked to the release of hostages, and Israel berated the US for allowing a ceasefire resolution to pass at the UN Security Council. The US also voiced its opposition to much of Israel's post-war plan for Gaza.[14] Still, on March 29, 2024, the Biden administration authorized the transfer of billions of dollars worth of bombs and fighter jets to Israel.[15][16] In total, the United States spent $17.9 billion on military aid to Israel from October 2023 to October 2024, a record for a single year, as estimated by the Costs of War Project at Brown University.[17][18]
After Hamas gunmen attacked Israel on October 7, resulting in the death of 1,139 Israelis, Israel began a campaign against Gaza.[20][21] Since the start of the Israeli operation, more than 39,000 Palestinians in Gaza have been killed, of whom 52% of identified were women and children.[22][23] Several thousand more are missing and presumed trapped under rubble.[24][25] Israel placed Gaza under a complete blockade, including the prevention of fuel and water from entering the Gaza Strip.[26][27][28][29][30] The United States described Hamas' preemptive attack as "unprovoked,"[31] and started sending warships and warplanes into the region, prepared to give Israel whatever it needs.[1] Civil rights groups such as the Center for Constitutional Rights meanwhile called on the government to address the underlying issues that have led to the recent violence, such as Israel's 56-year illegal possession of the Palestinian lands and its 16-year blockade of Gaza as well as "the apartheid regime throughout historic Palestine".[32]
Since Israel's founding in 1948, it has received $158 billion in military aid from the United States, making it the greatest recipient in history.[32][33] Following Israel's victory over surrounding Arab forces in the 1967 Six-Day War and its subsequent occupation of the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and Gaza, military assistance to the country surged significantly. The Iron Dome, which became operational in 2011, was created with the help of the United States, which is responsible for providing components for the system, including allocating more than $1.5 billion for missile defense for Israel in 2022.[34] As part of a record $38 billion agreement over ten years negotiated under former US President Barack Obama in 2016, US military aid to Israel exceeded $3.8 billion in 2023. Of the $3.8 billion in military aid given to Israel this year, half a billion was for Israel's missile defense. Washington has announced that it will replenish Israel's ammunition used in the recent war against Hamas.[34]
Timeline
2023
October
Hours after the start of the Israel–Hamas war on October 7, the United States started sending warships and warplanes into the region, prepared to give Israel whatever it needs.[1]
Israel asked the United States for Iron Dome interceptors, and President Joe Biden said Washington would quickly provide additional equipment and resources, including ammunition, which are going to reach Israel within days.
US secretary of state Antony Blinken said Washington would provide its "full support" to Israel, with guided missile launchers and F-35 fighter jets among the equipment being sent.[1]
By October 10, more ships and troops were on their way to Israel, and additional troops in the United States were being prepared to deploy if requested. One US aircraft carrier and its strike group were already in the eastern Mediterranean, and a second US carrier had left and was underway.
In addition, three naval warships were sent to the area. A large number of aircraft were sent to US military bases throughout the Middle East, and US special operations forces cooperated with the Israeli military in planning and intelligence.[1]
As Israel prepares for a possible ground attack on Gaza, the Biden administration and prominent members of Congress are preparing an aid package from the United States with about $2 billion in additional funding to support Israel, Time reported.[37]
On October 12, Secretary of State Antony Blinken reiterated America's commitment to Israel's security during a news conference with Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu.[26]
On October 14, Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III announced that he had dispatched a second aircraft carrier to the eastern Mediterranean “to deter hostile actions against Israel or any efforts towards widening this war”. In addition, the Air Force was sending twice as many F-16, A-10, and F-15E squadrons as before to the Persian Gulf region in order to intensify its land-based assault aircraft presence there. According to officials, the United States would have an aerial armada of more than 100 attack planes when combined with the four squadrons of F/A-18 jets that were stationed onboard each carrier. Additionally, to help with intelligence gathering and preparation for any operations aimed at locating and rescuing the 150 hostages—among them some Americans—that Hamas is keeping, the Pentagon had dispatched a small team of Special Operations personnel to Israel.[38]
On October 15, the White House declared that it would attempt this week to get congressional approval of a fresh $2 billion weaponry aid package for Israel and Ukraine.[39]
Also US defense secretary Lloyd Austin ordered about 2,000 troops to be prepared for possible deployment to Israel, several defense officials said.[40][1]
According to three American officials and one Israeli official, the Biden administration was discussing about the possibility of using military force if Hezbollah joins the Gaza war.[41]
The United States was prepared to send more forces as a deterrent to the Middle East if necessary.[42]
By October 17, five shipments of American weapons and equipment had arrived in Israel.[1] The US put 2,000 troops on high alert and extended the deployment of an aircraft carrier in the Middle East.[43]
On October 18, the US vetoed a United Nations Security Council resolution that would have condemned the Hamas attack on Israel while calling for a pause in the fighting to allow humanitarian aid into Gaza. The US said the resolution did not do enough to underscore Israel's right to self-defense. The US ambassador to the UN, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, told the council "We are on the ground doing the hard work of diplomacy. We believe we need to let that diplomacy play out".[44]
On October 19, one day after traveling to Israel, President Biden urged Congress to increase military aid to Israel, claiming that Hamas aimed to "annihilate" Israeli democracy.[45][20]
On October 20, Biden announced that the additional funds he asked Congress to authorize would come to a total of $14 billion, as part of a $105 billion military aid package that addressed Ukraine, Taiwan and Israel as well as US border security.[46][20]
On October 21 the Pentagon declared that two of its most potent missile defense systems—a THAAD battery and extra Patriot batteries—would be deployed to the Middle East.[46][47]
A Wall Street Journal report says that the United States has given Israel a range of munitions, including so-called "bunker buster" bombs, for its war in Gaza. The report stated that US arms shipments to Israel since the start of the war included 15,000 bombs and 57,000 155mm artillery shells, mostly carried on C-17 military cargo planes. U.S. has also sent more than 5,000 unguided Mk82 bombs, more than 5,400 Mk84 bombs, about 1,000 small diameter GBU-39 bombs, and almost 3,000 JDAMs. The Wall Street Journal says that some of the bloodiest Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip have involved the use of big US-made bombs, such as the one that destroyed an apartment complex in the Jabalia refugee camp and killed over a hundred people.[48]
On December 8, the US vetoed another UN Security Council resolution calling for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire.[8] The US called it "unbalanced" because it did not condemn the Hamas attack nor acknowledge Israel's right to self-defense.[49]
On December 9, the Pentagon said that on the prior day, Biden used emergency authority to skip congressional review to sell ~14,000 tank shells worth $106.5 million for immediate delivery to Israel.[50]
On December 12, Biden said "Israel's security can rest on the United States" but warned that Israel was losing international support because of its "indiscriminate bombing" of Gaza.[51]
On December 29, the United States government again used emergency authority to sell Israel artillery shells and related weapons worth $147.5 million in order to replenish Israeli weapons stockpiles.[52]
2024
January
US secretary of state Antony Blinken and Israeli president Isaac Herzog in Tel Aviv, Israel, 9 January 2024
On January 4, John Kirby stated the United States had "not seen anything" that Israel had done that would make the US change its approach.[53]
On January 18, US Department of State spokesman Matthew Miller stated, "Our support for Israel remains ironclad."[54]
PM Netanyahu stated that he would not support a Palestinian state and that he was proud to have thus far prevented a state, leading Biden to comment that he believed a two-state solution was still possible with Netanyahu in power.[55]
On January 19, John Kirby stated, "We don't have any indications that there's deliberate efforts to commit war crimes" by Israel.[56]
Brett McGurk, the White House leader of post-war Gaza planning, was reportedly pushing a plan that would exchange minimal Israeli interference in the Palestinian Territories for Saudi normalization with Israel.[57]
The CIA established a new taskforce to provide intelligence to Israel regarding Hamas leaders.[58]
On February 8, Biden called Israel's actions in Gaza "over the top".[59] Following this, the Biden administration issued a national security directive demanding written assurances from Israel (and other countries) that it was using US-supplied weapons in line with international law or face a pause in weapons transfers.[60][61] Israel has to prove this to the US State Department on a yearly basis or risk having its weapons supplies cut.[62]
In a call with Benjamin Netanyahu on February 11, Biden said the US would not support an Israeli assault on Rafah without a "credible and executable plan" for ensuring the safety of civilians.[63] Three anonymous U.S. officials stated that the US would not punish Israel if its forces attacked Rafah without a plan to protect civilians.[64]
The State Department stated it was reviewing reports of Israel harming Palestinian civilians in Gaza.[65]
The Senate passed a US$14 billion aid package for Israel.[66]
The U.S. began preparing to send Israel more weapons ahead of its planned Rafah offensive,[67] stating, "Israel takes effective action to prevent gross violations of human rights."[68]
On 20 February, the US vetoed a UN Security Council resolution seeking an "immediate humanitarian ceasefire".[69] The US envoy, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, said that the resolution would undermine ongoing hostage negotiations: "Demanding an immediate unconditional ceasefire, without an agreement requiring Hamas to release the hostages, will not bring about durable peace".[70] Instead, the US proposed a draft UN Security Council resolution, calling for a "temporary ceasefire in Gaza as soon as practicable, based on the formula of all hostages being released". It stated that a Rafah offensive would have "serious implications" and "should not proceed under current circumstances". The US's draft resolution also rejects any Israeli attempt at demographic or territorial change in Gaza that would violate international law. The US said it would not yet put the resolution to a vote as it wanted to allow negotiations to continue.[71][72]
Republican congressman Andy Ogles responded "we should kill 'em all" when asked about the deaths of Palestinian children.[73]
Following the Flour massacre, the US began airdrops of aid into Gaza.[75] Officials stated, "Biden remains unwilling to make any major shifts in his policy toward Israel, including placing conditions on military aid to Israel".[76]
Algeria proposed a motion to the UN Security Council to release a statement condemning the massacre and blaming Israel, which was blocked by the United States. The deputy US ambassador to the UN, Robert Wood, said the US was alarmed by the incident and called on Israel to investigate, but claimed "We don't have all the facts on the ground".[77]Members of the US congressional delegation with Israeli president Isaac Herzog in Jerusalem, 28 March 2024
Biden called on Republicans to pass his foreign aid bill to "help ensure that Israel can defend itself". He said it would also provide "critical humanitarian aid to the Palestinian people".[78]
On 4 March, US vice president Kamala Harris called for "an immediate ceasefire for at least the next six weeks" because of "the immense scale of suffering in Gaza". She said Israel must let more aid into Gaza and called on Hamas to accept a ceasefire deal involving the release of hostages.[79] She added that "President Joe Biden and I are unwavering in our commitment to Israel's security".[80] Harris was reportedly urging Biden to speak more about the high death toll and plight of survivors in Gaza.[81]
UN Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield stated, "Not nearly enough humanitarian aid is getting into the hands of Palestinians".[82]
U.S. officials told Congress they had approved more than 100 arms sales to Israel since 7 October.[83]
Some of Biden's closest allies in the U.S. Senate — including Chris Coons, Jack Reed, Tim Kaine, and Patty Murray — were reportedly pressuring Biden to change his tactics in Gaza.[84] Senator Bernie Sanders, along with seven other U.S. senators, warned Biden that arming Israel was a violation of the Foreign Assistance Act, which bars the U.S. from arming countries that limit humanitarian aid.[85][86]
An intelligence report found that Israel was likely to experience armed resistance from Hamas "for years to come" and that Netanyahu's viability as leader "may be in jeopardy".[87]
In a speech on 14 March, the Democratic US Senate majority leader, Chuck Schumer, berated Israeli PM Netanyahu as an "obstacle to peace". He said that Netanyahu "has been too willing to tolerate the civilian toll in Gaza" and that "Israel cannot survive if it becomes a pariah".[88] Schumer added that if Netanyahu stayed in power after the war, "the United States will have no choice but to play a more active role in shaping Israeli policy by using our leverage to change the present course".[89] President Biden praised the speech and said Schumer's "serious concerns" are shared by many Americans.[88]
A group of 19 Senate Democrats sent an open letter to Biden, stating, "We request the Biden administration promptly establish a bold, public framework outlining the steps necessary" to create a Palestinian state.[90]
Jack Lew, Joseph R. Biden's ambassador to Israel, endorsed Israel's claim that it was abiding by international law during its war on Gaza.[91]
Reuters reported congressional leaders and the White House had reached a deal to bar funding for UNRWA, the organization principally responsible for delivering food and providing education in Gaza, until March 2025.[92]
Upon the bill's passage, Democratic U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen stated, "Denying funding for UNRWA is tantamount to denying food to starving people and restricting medical supplies to injured civilians".[93]
The bill included a long-standing provision that limits aid to the Palestinian Authority if "the Palestinians initiate an International Criminal Court (ICC) judicially authorized investigation, or actively supports such an investigation, that subjects Israeli nationals to an investigation for alleged crimes against Palestinians."[94]
John Barrasso stated that in a meeting with Netanyahu, senate Republicans told him that "Israel has every right to defend themselves".[95]
The US put forward a draft UN Security Council resolution which stated the "imperative" for "an immediate and sustained ceasefire", facilitating aid delivery and supporting ongoing talks between Israel and Hamas, linked to the release of hostages.[96] On March 22, the draft resolution was vetoed by Russia and China, who said the wording was ambiguous and was not a straightforward "call" or "demand" to halt hostilities.[97]US secretary of state Antony Blinken with Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the Israeli war cabinet in Tel Aviv, Israel, 22 March 2024
US secretary of state Antony Blinken and Benny Gantz in Tel Aviv, 22 March 2024
On March 22, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said he told the Israeli government that "A major military ground operation [in Rafah] is not the way to do it. It risks killing many more civilians, it risks wreaking greater havoc on the provision of humanitarian assistance, it risks further isolation of Israel around the world and jeopardizing its long-term security and standing". He added "We’re looking forward to seeing Israeli officials in Washington next week to go through the details and the best way forward. We’re determined that Israel succeed in defending itself".[98]
On March 23, the US Defense Ministry said a planned visit by the Israeli Defense Minister to the U.S. would focus on "the progress of the fighting to dismantle Hamas in the Gaza Strip, the efforts to return the hostages held captive by Hamas, the actions being taken on the ground to bring in humanitarian aid", as well as on weapons procurement "to preserve the qualitative advantage of the State of Israel in the region".[99]
On March 24, Vice president Kamala Harris replied, "I am ruling out nothing," when asked if there would be consequences for Israel if it invaded Rafah.[100]
A group of 17 Democratic senators urged the Biden administration to reject Israel's report stating that it was complying with international human rights law in Gaza.[101] The following day, the U.S. Department of State accepted Israel's statements regarding its compliance.[102]
On March 25, the UN Security Council passed a resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire for the remainder of Ramadan, "leading to a lasting sustainable ceasefire", and demanding the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages. The US abstained, allowing the resolution to pass.[103] The Israeli government berated the US for not voting against the resolution, and called off a meeting between an Israeli delegation and US officials in Washington.[104]
The U.S. House introduced a bill to reevaluate the U.S. relationship with South Africa.[105]
On 30 March, the White House authorized $2.5 billion in weapons transfers to Israel.[106]
Republican congressman Tim Walberg suggested dropping a nuclear bomb on Gaza to "get it over quick".[107]
April
In response to a question asking whether additional weapons transfers to Israel would weaken U.S. credibility, a State Department spokesman stated, "We are committed to Israel’s right to self-defence, and this is a long-term commitment the United States has made."[108]
Following the World Central Kitchen drone strikes, a senior U.S. official told Politico, "It’s just rinse and repeat with the Israelis. The American political system can’t or won’t draw a real line with them and that is regrettable."[109]
U.S. senator Chris Coons stated, "If Benjamin Netanyahu were to order the IDF into Rafah at scale... and make no provision for civilians or for humanitarian aid, I would vote to condition aid to Israel".[110]
Former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi signed a letter urging Biden to stop sending arms to Israel.[111]
A report by ProPublica found that U.S. secretary of state Antony Blinken had failed to take action on State Department recommendations that units in the Israeli army be sanctioned due to their involvement with rapes and killings.[114]
A U.S. State Department report described "allegations of numerous incidents such as arbitrary or unlawful killings, enforced disappearance, torture and unjustified arrests of journalists".[115]
Biden signed a $95 billion security package, which included around $26 billion in military aid for Israel and $1 billion in humanitarian aid for Gaza.[116][117]
Responding to the Republican senators, Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen of Maryland said, "It is fine to express opposition to a possible judicial action, but it is absolutely wrong to interfere in a judicial matter by threatening judicial officers, their family members and their employees with retribution. This thuggery is something befitting the mafia, not U.S. senators."[118][119][120]
The U.S. Department of State found five Israeli army units responsible for "gross violations of human rights" prior to 7 October and that they remained eligible for military aid.[122]
On 1 May 2024, U.S. senators met International Criminal Court officials online to discuss potential arrest warrants.[123] On 3 May 2024, chief prosecutor Karim Ahmad Khan called for "all attempts to impede, intimidate, or improperly influence officials [to] cease immediately" and referred to Article 70 of the Rome Statute defining "retaliating against an official of the court on account of duties performed" as an offence.[124][125][118]
Tony Blinken stated the "only thing standing between the people of Gaza and a ceasefire is Hamas".[126] Two days later, Hamas agreed to a U.S.-negotiated ceasefire,[127] which Israel then rejected.[128]
A letter signed by 86 House representatives stated that Israel's restrictions on humanitarian aid called into question its assurances of compliance with the U.S. Foreign Assistance Act.[129]
The U.S. president stated it would halt the shipment of bombs to Israel if a "major invasion" of Rafah were launched, stating, "Civilians have been killed in Gaza as a consequence of those bombs".[130] Less than a week later, however, Biden notified Congress about a $1 billion arms sale to Israel.[131]
A U.S. State Department report found Israel's use of U.S. weapons "likely" violated international law.[132] In the same report, however, the U.S. found Israel's assurances it was following international law to be "credible".[133]Avril Benoit, the executive director of Doctors Without Borders, stated the analysis was not a "good faith effort to uphold US law".[134]
On May 12, 2024, Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump stated, "(Biden) is surrendering our college campuses to anarchists, jihadist freaks and anti-american extremists who are trying to tear down our American flag. ... If you come here from another country and try to bring jihadism or anti-Americanism or anti-Semitism to our campuses, we will immediately deport you. You'll be out of that school."[135]
The Republican-controlled U.S. House passed legislation that would slash the U.S. military budget unless Biden sent 3,500 heavy-duty bombs to Israel.[136] The White House said Biden would veto it if it come to his desk.[137]
US president Joe Biden said that the request of the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court to issue an arrest warrant against the leaders of Israel is cruel and the U.S. will always stand by Israel.[138]
US lawmakers have passed legislation aimed at sanctioning the International Criminal Court (ICC) over efforts by its prosecutors to issue arrest warrants for senior Israeli officials accused of war crimes in Gaza.[140]
Benjamin Netanyahu was invited to address a joint session of Congress, scheduled for July 24, 2024.[143]
The United States officially signed a Letter of Offer and Acceptance, allowing Israel to purchase 25 additional Lockheed Martin F-35 stealth fighter jets for $3 billion.[144]
Rep. Gregory Meeks and Sen. Ben Cardin signed off to an arms sale to Israel totaling $18 billion, after pressure from the Biden administration.[145]
The U.S. House passed a bill barring the U.S. State Department from using the Gaza Health Ministry's death toll statistics.[146]
July
U.S. vice president Kamala Harris stated that she would not preside over Netanyahu's joint session of Congress.[147]
The United States has resumed shipments of the 500-pound bombs, which were halted in February over concerns about the humanitarian impact of Israel's use of them in killing Palestinians in Gaza.[148]
Netanyahu made an address to a joint session of Congress, amidst large protests in Washington.[149][150]
Following a meeting with Netanyahu, U.S. vice president Harris stated she would "not be silent" about the suffering of Palestinians in Gaza.[151]
The Department of State criticized the ICJ ruling on the Israeli occupation, claiming that it would make future negotiations for a Palestinian state more difficult.[152]
U.S. ambassador Rahm Emanuel announced he would skip the atomic bombing peace memorial in Nagasaki because of the city's decision not to invite Israel to the ceremony, along with Russia and Belarus.[154]
On 9 August 2024, the Department of State said the United States would send Israel an additional $3.5 billion to spend on US-made weapons and military equipment.[155]
On 13 August 2024, the Department of State announced that the U.S. had approved a $20 billion weapons package sale to Israel, which included fighter jets and advanced air-to-air missiles.[156]
The U.S. government was sued for allegedly discriminating against Palestinian American activists, including seizing personal electronic devices and placing one plaintiff on the No Fly List.[157]
Former president and Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump claimed that he told Benjamin Netanyahu, "It has to get over with fast... Get your victory and get it over with. It has to stop, the killing has to stop." He also made the statement, "From the start, Harris has worked to tie Israel's hand behind its back, demanding an immediate ceasefire, always demanding ceasefire," and added that it "would only give Hamas time to regroup and launch a new October 7 style attack". Trump also labelled pro-Palestinian supporters calling for an end to U.S. support for Israel's war crimes as "pro-Hamas thugs" and "jihad sympathizers". He threatened to arrest and deport them from the United States if he becomes president again.[158]
Following the Biden administration's decision not to sanction the Netzah Yehuda Battalion,[159] former State Department human rights official Charles Blaha stated, "It really calls into question how much value the department gives to the lives of Palestinian-Americans."[160]
The city council of Portland, Maine passed a resolution urging the city to divest from 80 companies which were potentially complicit in Israel's violations of international law.[162]
U.S. representative Rashida Tlaib submitted a list of the children killed in Gaza into the official record of the United States Congress.[163]
The U.S. secretary of state and Chairman of the Joints Chiefs of Staff wrote a letter to Israel threatening that weapons transfers would be affected if it didn't increase humanitarian aid into northern Gaza within 30 days.[164]
November
Herzog and Biden at the White House in Washington, D.C., 12 November 2024
On 12 November, Israeli President Herzog arrived in Washington, D.C. for a state visit and met with President Joe Biden. He told Biden: "In the Bible, it says that Joseph will strengthen Israel. And clearly, Mr. President, you’ve done that."[165]
The Biden administration said on November 12 that Israel has successfully increased the flow of humanitarian aid to Gaza and will continue to receive arms transfers from US. The United States had threatened a month ago if the situation had not improved, it would halt arm transfer to Israel. The relief groups are of the opinion that conditions are now worse than they were at any point during the 13-month-old war.[166]
HuffPost reported that the Biden administration persuaded Democratic senators to vote against a resolution to halt the sale of tank shells to Israel, requested by prominent progressives and mainstream Democratic senators. The resolution failed by a vote of 79 to 18.[167]
Analysis
U.S. lawmakers have long viewed Israel as an ally to help protect U.S. strategic interests in the Middle East. Maintaining Israel's regional military hegemony, according to Al-Jazeera, is a central element of U.S. Middle East policy. This has been achieved with U.S. financial aid and an increase in Israel's military arsenal.[34] On the question of why Joe Biden is reluctant to freeze arms transfers or impose conditions on future supplies, Guardian journalist, Robert Tait writes that the US is concerned that pressure on Benjamin Netanyahu could push him towards a common goal with Republicans in a year leading to the election.[168] Josh Paul, who resigned over sending arms to Israel, has described Biden policy in favor of "the status quo of the occupation" and a "shortsighted, destructive, unjust" policy that "will only lead to more and deeper suffering for both the Israeli and the Palestinian people — and is not in the long term American interest."[169]
Although the U.S. has asked Israel to protect civilians and allow humanitarian aid, State Secretary Antony Blinken acknowledged that there is "a gap" between these appeals and "the actual results that we’re seeing on the ground". The United States has not used its leverage over Israel—its weapons transfers and diplomatic support—to ensure civilian safety, leading the Washington Post to describe American rhetoric as a "good cop-bad cop approach". Aaron David Miller of the CEIP said that the Biden administration deserved credit for the humanitarian pause negotiations, but that it had "tethered" itself to Israeli war aims that cannot be achieved without bringing "grievous harm to the civilian population".[170]
Ali Harb described the contradictions between media reports about Biden's "frustration" with Netanyahu, and his continued military support for Israel, stating, "The US keeps calling for minimising civilian casualties, but the Palestinian death toll keeps growing. The Biden administration repeatedly emphasises the two-state solution; Israeli leaders continue to explicitly say they oppose the establishment of a Palestinian state."[171] In March 2024, Al Jazeera English senior analyst Marwan Bishara assessed a perceived shift in Biden's tone toward the war, stating, "Biden is underlining a change of tone, not a change of policy. And that explains a bit why he sounds as if he's speaking from both sides of his mouth."[172]
In late-March 2024, Tamer Qarmout, a professor at the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies, stated, "You don't see the US using its real leverage to stop Israel or correct its behaviours."[173] While Republican support for Israel remains strong, many Democrats are debating making future U.S. military aid conditional on Israel's behavior in the West Bank and Gaza. According to Steven A. Cook, for the United States, a more normal bilateral relationship with Israel is likely to reduce the moral costs of military aid.[174] In an op-ed, Elias Khoury argued that the United States's support of Israel "has eroded its international authority and claim to uphold the international rules-based system".[175]
Amidst criticism that Biden's blanket support for Israel's actions had weakened the supposed rules-based order, Lara Friedman of the Foundation for Middle East Peace, wrote, "The costs of these new rules of war will be paid with the blood of civilians worldwide for generations to come, and the U.S. responsibility for enabling, defending, and normalizing these new rules, and their horrific, dehumanizing consequences will not be forgotten."[176]
U.S. isolation
Israel and the United States have become increasingly isolated amid growing global calls for a ceasefire.[2][3][4][5] American political scientist Ian Bremmer stated that the Biden administration's position unconditionally supporting the Israeli invasion of Gaza has left Joe Biden as isolated on the world stage as Russian president Vladimir Putin has been since the Russian invasion of Ukraine began in 2022.[177]Jeffrey Sachs, a professor of economics at Columbia University, also stated that the United States was being isolated on the world stage due to its support for Israel.[178] In March 2024, U.S. senator Bernie Sanders wrote the U.S. was "virtually alone in the world" in continuing to defend Israel's actions as the Palestinian death toll has sparked widespread outrage and protests.[179]
Peace process
According to some analyses, the US-led ceasefire talks are simply buying more time for Israel's war in Gaza to continue.[180] Following US request to Qatar to expel Hamas from the country, according to the BBC, this is the result of the Biden administration's less influence over Israel, which led them to believe that the best way to force some sort of deal was by putting pressure on Hamas.[181] Writing in Le Monde Diplomatique, Adam Shatz said that Israel had taken advantage of the United States' facilitation of a peace process to assassinate Ismail Haniyeh and Hasan Nasrallah, writing that "Netanyahu helped the Americans to draft a ceasefire proposal he had no intention of honouring, while conspiring to kill the Arab leaders with whom the ceasefire was to be reached."[182]
The Islamic world and much of the Global South accused the United States and its allies of a double standard in condemning an illegal occupation in Ukraine while standing firmly behind Israel.[183] Western leaders, pressed for weeks to say whether the loss of thousands of mostly civilian lives could be a violation of international law, spoke only tentatively, adding that they could not judge: "We're not going to get dragged into all this judge-and-jury role," US national security adviser Jake Sullivan said.[184] By comparison, a year earlier the United States Department of State had officially announced that, based on available information, the US government assessed that members of Russia's forces in Ukraine had committed war crimes.[184] The U.S. State Department said there is no need to launch any formal domestic investigation into whether Israel has committed war crimes, even though the weapons it uses are supplied by the US.[184] In a speech to the European Parliament, the EU's top diplomat, Josep Borrell, said water cuts are a violation of international law regardless of where they occur, whether in Ukraine or Gaza.[185]
In an interview, Aaron David Miller, a former State Department official, stated to The New Yorker, "Do I think that Joe Biden has the same depth of feeling and empathy for the Palestinians of Gaza as he does for the Israelis? No, he doesn’t".[186] In April 2024, the Foreign Ministry of Turkey accused the U.S. of having a "double-standard policy on human rights".[187]Barry Trachtenberg, a professor at Wake Forest University, criticized Western support of Israeli military actions, stating, "What we’re seeing is this clear double-standard where when it’s in the interests of the United States and Western allies, they’ll invoke international law. When it’s not in their interests, they’ll clearly violate international law".[188] In July 2024, Spanish prime minister Pedro Sanchez spoke at the NATO summit in Washington D.C., urging the West to stop its "double standards" between Gaza and Ukraine.[189]
After Israel killed the American peace activist Ayşenur Ezgi Eygi in the West Bank, another American activist who was shot by Israeli forces wrote an editorial in Time magazine, stating, "Earlier this year, President Joe Biden said that 'if you harm an American, we will respond.' Yet the Biden Administration has not even condemned my attack."[190] The families of Americans killed by Israel also stated that the Department of Justice had failed to investigate their relatives' deaths.[191] According to a leaked letter, Department of Justice attorneys requested Attorney General Merrick Garland to "investigate potential violations of U.S. law by Israel’s government, military, and citizenry, and hold the perpetrators to account."[192]
Human rights organizations and UN officials have heavily criticized the Biden administration for vetoing multiple UN resolutions calling for an immediate ceasefire and for continuing to send arms to Israel. Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas said the US was complicit in war crimes,[193] and Amnesty International's Secretary General said that the veto showed that the US "displays a callous disregard for civilian suffering in the face of a staggering death toll".[194]Doctors Without Borders said that the veto "stands in sharp contrast to the values it professes to uphold," and that the US was providing "diplomatic cover for the ongoing atrocities in Gaza".[194]Human Rights Watch said that the veto and the military support "risks complicity in war crimes".[6] Following the veto, a UN General Assembly resolution calling for a ceasefire garnered overwhelming support, with 153 countries voting for the resolution to 10 opposed.[195] Turkey's president called for reform of the UN Security Council system that allows for the five permanent members to veto resolutions supported by the overwhelming majority of countries.[196]
Polling by the Arab Center for Research and Policy Studies showed 94 percent of respondents in sixteen Middle East countries had a negative view of U.S. policy in the war and 76 percent had a diminished view of the country due to its policies.[197] In a social media post, the Palestine UN mission criticized the US secretary of state for not acknowledging the tens of thousands of killed Palestinians in his post marking the 100 days since the start of the war.[198]
On 4 February 2024, Irish MEP Mick Wallace accused the United States of lacking respect for other cultures or international law after it initiated a bombing campaign against Yemen.[199] Following a US veto of a UN Security Council resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire, Zhang Jun, China's ambassador to the UN, stated it was "nothing different from giving the green light to the continued slaughter".[200]
On October 29, 2023, the only Palestinian-American in Congress, Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), accused Israel of committing genocide, saying, "President Biden, not all America is with you on this one, and you need to wake up and understand. We are literally watching people commit genocide."[201] Representative Lloyd Doggett (D-TX) stated on December 27, 2023, that U.S. policy in Israel had failed.[202] Representative Jim McGovern (D-MA) stated on January 3, 2024, that Israeli officials' statements calling for the forced displacement of Palestinians from Gaza were "reprehensible".[203] Tlaib and Congressman Cori Bush (D-MO) released a joint statement on January 12 in support of the South Africa International Court of Justice case, stating, "The US must stop trying to discredit and undermine this case and the international legal system it claims to support."[204] Congressmembers Ro Khanna (D-CA) and Val Hoyle (D-OR) and Senator Mike Lee (R-UT) condemned Biden's 2024 missile strikes in Yemen on January 12, stating that only Congress has the power to approve a war.[205] A January 19 letter from 60 Democratic Congressmembers urged U.S. secretary of state Antony Blinken to firmly condemn the forced displacement of Palestinians from Gaza.[206] A group of a dozen Jewish Congressmembers issued a statement on January 19 condemning Netanyahu's opposition to a Palestinian state, which read, "We strongly disagree with the Prime Minister. A two-state solution is the path forward."[207]
Texas Congressman Lloyd Doggett wrote on January 24: "After all America has done for him, if Netanyahu 'needs to be able to say no' to us, we need to say no to him and do so now!"[208] On January 24, a group of five Congressmembers requested the Government Accountability Office to review whether arms transferred to Israel were being used to violate international law.[209]Mark Pocan (D-WI) criticized Biden's decision to suspend funding to UNRWA, stating on January 29: "UNRWA feeds 1.2 million people a day, as well as helps distribute aid now to all Palestinians in need. Aid needs to be restored now to help the displaced millions in Gaza."[210]Chuy Garcia (D-IL) stated that the "decision to freeze UNRWA funding" should be reversed.[211] On February 11, 2024, Congresswoman Cori Bush criticized Israel's impending invasion of Rafah, stating, "Almost half of Gaza's population has taken refuge in Rafah. There's nowhere else to go."[212] Congressman Ro Khanna also criticized Biden's response to Israel's planned attack on Rafah, stating, "This is not the time for vague generalities about doing more to protect civilian life."[213]
On February 28, U.S. congresswoman Madeleine Dean (D-PA) called for an end to the war and condemned Netanyahu, stating, "Prime Minister Netanyahu's dishonesty – his broken promises to use precision strikes to protect civilians and his false claims that safe zones have been created and enforced – is unacceptable".[214] A group of two dozen House members demanded Biden and Blinken take steps to ensure journalists' safety in Gaza, stating: "Not enough steps have been taken to safeguard the lives of the civilian population in Gaza, including journalists".[215] On February 29, Congressman Jim McGovern called for the U.S. to increase humanitarian aid to Gaza, stating, "Massive humanitarian support is needed to save innocent lives."[216] A group of six U.S. House representatives – Rosa DeLauro (D-CT), Sean Casten (D-IL), Madeleine Dean, Becca Balint (D-VT), Salud Carbajal (D-CA), and Mark Takano (D-CA) – returned from a trip to Israel and released a joint statement, saying, "We are deeply worried that Prime Minister Netanyahu is moving toward the total destruction of Gaza and has demonstrated an utter disregard for Palestinian lives".[217]Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-NJ) stated in May 2024, "We are way past the red line. We cannot continue supporting this."[218]
In October 2024, a group of several dozen House Democrats signed a letter to the Biden Administration, urging tougher accountability regarding press access to the Gaza Strip.[219]
U.S. Senate
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer with Israeli President Herzog in Tel Aviv, Israel, 15 October 2023
On November 2, 2023, Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) became the first U.S. senator to call for a permanent ceasefire.[220] He was followed by Jeff Merkley (D-OR) later that same month.[221][222] On December 23, 2023, US senator Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), stated, "There's a big gap between what the United States says is essential, and what the Netanyahu government is prepared to do. And when you see these big gaps, the United States looks feckless."[223] US senator Tim Kaine (D-VA) criticized Biden's emergency sale of weapons to Israel on December 30, 2023, stating, "Why should the Admin bypass Congress on arms sales to any nation? Bypassing Congress = keeping the American public in the dark."[224] U.S. senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) forced a vote on January 17, 2024, on a resolution requiring the State Department to explore whether U.S. weapons were being used to violate international humanitarian law.[225]
On February 7, 2024, U.S. senator Chris Murphy (D-CT) stated he would support an amendment requiring weapons sold internationally to be used in compliance with U.S. law, international humanitarian law, and the laws of armed conflict.[226] In a speech on February 13, Senator Chris Van Hollen accused the Israeli government of committing war crimes in Gaza, stating, "Kids in Gaza are now dying from the deliberate withholding of food. That is a war crime. It is a textbook war crime. And that makes those who orchestrate it war criminals."[227] On March 9, Senator Bernie Sanders criticized members of Congress, stating, "It is absurd to criticise Netanyahu's war in one breath and provide another $10bn to continue that war in the next."[228] On April 29, Senator Van Hollen of Maryland there was "serious doubt on the integrity of the process in the Biden administration for reviewing whether the Netanyahu government is complying with international law in Gaza".[229]
In May 2024, Bernie Sanders asked how the U.S. would be able to criticize other countries' human rights abuses if it ignored the "crimes against humanity" committed in Gaza.[230] In June 2024, Senator Chris Van Hollen urged sanctions against Israeli finance minister Bezalel Smotrich during a U.S. congressional subcommittee meeting.[231]
Within the Biden administration
In January 2024, a letter was signed by more than a dozen Biden campaign staffers calling for condition of US support to Israel and a ceasefire. Paul told The Guardian that the administration is witnessing "pretty extraordinary levels of dissent".[232] On 2 February 2024, a group of 800 U.S. and European officials signed an open letter stating their governments' policies were weakening their nations' "moral standing".[233] Following the World Central Kitchen drone strikes on 1 April 2024, internal dissent within the Biden administration on the issue of weapons sales to Israel increased.[234]
During a February 2024 meeting between U.S. diplomats, humanitarian workers, and USAID director Samantha Power, staff were reportedly "visibly upset" with the administration's policy, with some wearing keffiyehs in protest and others breaking down into tears.[235]
Resignations
By 7 January 2024, two officials from the Biden administration—Josh Paul and Tariq Habash, working on arms sale at the State Department and policy adviser at the Department of Education respectively—had resigned in opposition to US support to Israel's war efforts.[236] In March 2024, another State Department staffer working on human rights, Anelle Sheline, resigned over the administration's support to the war, in particular its bypassing of Congress to authorize the sale of weapons to Israel.[237] In April 2024, the U.S. State Department Arabic spokesperson resigned in protest of the administration's Gaza policy.[238] In May 2024, Lily Greenberg Call, the special assistant to the Interior Department's chief of staff, resigned in protest of Biden's Gaza policies.[239] On 30 May, a senior State Department official resigned, stating U.S. statements that Israel was not blocking humanitarian aid into Gaza were false.[240] In June 2024, the twelve public Biden administration resignees signed a joint statement calling Biden's Gaza policy "a failure and a threat to U.S. national security".[241] In July 2024, a political appointee in the Department of the Interior resigned in protest of Biden's Gaza policies.[242]
In May 2024, US Army Major Harrison Mann resigned in protest of Biden's Gaza policies.[244] In June 2024, an Air Force engineer resigned in protest of the United States' "complicit[ity] in the genocide in Gaza".[245] Later the same month, two U.S. Air Force enlistees stated they were seeking conscientious objector status due to the United States' support for Israel's action in Gaza.[246]
Amongst the Muslim and Arab American communities, there was strong backlash to US support of Israel, with some vowing to abstain from supporting Biden in the 2024 presidential election.[247]Palestinian-Americans with family in Gaza were reportedly "pleading with the U.S. government to evacuate their family members".[248] Some, including former-Congressman Justin Amash, reported the death of family members from Israeli airstrikes.[249] American citizens stuck in Gaza also criticized the United States government's response to the conflict.[250] In a meeting with Biden's campaign chair Julie Chávez Rodriguez, the publisher of Arab American News reportedly told her, "If this man wants our vote, he has to do more than Jesus Christ – bring a lot more dead back to life. Thousands of people's blood is on his hands."[251] In response to late-February 2024 reports that Biden again planned to veto a UN resolution for a ceasefire, the US Campaign for Palestinian Rights stated, "Our government is beyond evil."[252]
Gallup poll showing US change from majority approval (Nov. 2023) to majority disapproval (March 2024) of Israeli military action in Gaza.
In a Reuters/Ipsos poll released on November 15, 2023, 32% of respondents said that the U.S. should support Israel, 39% said that the U.S. should be a neutral mediator, 4% said that the U.S. should support Palestinians, and 15% said the U.S. shouldn't be involved at all.[259]
In a Gallup poll released on November 30, 2023, 50% of the U.S. respondents approved of Israel's military action in Gaza, and 45% disapproved.[260] In November 2023, the Jewish Election Institute found that 74% of Jewish American registered voters approved of the Biden administration's handling of the war.[261]
In a Data for Progress poll released on December 5, 2023, 61% of likely voters, including a majority of Democrats (76%) and Independents (57%) and a plurality of Republicans (49%), supported the U.S. calling for a permanent ceasefire and a de-escalation of violence in Gaza; 83% of Democrats, 74% of Independents, and 63% of Republicans supported sending food, water, and medical supplies to people in Gaza; 77% of Democrats, 63% of Independents, and 55% of Republicans supported ensuring that people in Gaza have reliable access to fuel and electricity; and 63% of voters, including 65% of those under age 45, agreed with the statement that “The U.S. should hold its ally Israel to a high standard and only provide military aid to Israel if they meet our standards for human rights."[262]
In a New York Times/Siena College poll released on December 19, 2023, 44 percent of voters said that Israel should stop its military campaign to protect against civilian casualties, and 39 percent said that Israel should continue its military campaign even if it means that civilian casualties in Gaza mount. 57% of voters said that they disapproved of President Biden's handling of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, whereas 33% approved.[263]
In an Economist/YouGov poll released on January 24, 2024, 35% of U.S. adults agreed that Israel's military campaign against Palestinians amounts to genocide, 36% disagreed, and 29% were undecided. Among U.S. citizens aged 18–29, 49% of those surveyed agreed that Israel is committing genocide, with 24% disagreeing, and 27% uncertain.[264]
In an Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll released on February 2, 2024, 50% of U.S. adults said that the military response from Israel in the Gaza Strip had gone too far, whereas 31% said that it had "been about right", and 15% thought that it had "not gone far enough".[265]
As of February 25, 2024, over 70 cities in the United States have voted for a ceasefire.[266][267]
In a Gallup poll released on March 4, 2024, positive opinions of Israel had dropped from 64% to 38% amongst young people aged 18 to 34. Overall, 58% of Americans had a positive view of Israel.[268]
In a Center for Economic and Policy Research poll released on March 5, 2024, 52% of U.S. citizens supported ending arms transfers to Israel. 62% of Democrats supported halting arms sales, while 14% disagreed, whereas 30% of Republicans supported the measure, and 55% opposed it.[269][270]
In a Gallup poll released on March 27, 2024, 55% of the responders disapproved of Israel's military action in Gaza, 36% approved, and 9% had no opinion.[258]
In a Data for Progress poll, in collaboration with Zeteo, released on May 8, 2024, 83% of Democrats, 56% of Republicans, and 70% of all likely voters supported the United States calling for a permanent ceasefire a de-escalation of violence in Gaza; 56% of Democrats, 23% of Republicans, and 39% of all likely voters believed that Israel is committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza, with 22% of Democrats, 19% of Republicans, and 23% of all likely voters being uncertain regarding the issue; and 55% of Democrats, 36% of Republicans, and 46% of all likely voters said that they disapprove of college campuses limiting students' rights and abilities to protest against Israel's military operations, whereas 32% of Democrats, 49% of Republicans, and 40% of all likely voters approved of doing so.[271][272][273][274][275]
A YouGov poll released on May 21, 2024, and conducted in the key swing states Arizona, Michigan, Minnesota, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin, with a highly representative sample of 500 registered Democratic and Independent voters, found that between 74.1% and 82.8% of the respondents supported an immediate and permanent ceasefire, depending on the state, and that between 19.2% and 24.2% of the respondents are less likely to vote for Biden in the 2024 United States presidential election because of his handling of the war in Gaza. Over 40% of the polled voters in each state stated that the combination of imposing a lasting ceasefire and conditioning aid to Israel would make them more likely to vote for Biden.[276][277]
A CBS News poll released on June 9, 2024, found that 61 percent of all Americans think that the United States should not send weapons and supplies to Israel, including 77 percent of Democrats and nearly 40 percent of Republicans.[278]
According to a Data for Progress poll released on June 12, 2024, 64% of all likely voters, including 86% of Democrats, 64% of Independents, 62% of swing voters, and 43% of Republicans supported Joe Biden's proposed ceasefire deal in Gaza, with the specifics: "A complete ceasefire and withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza. The release of Israeli hostages in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners. A surge of humanitarian aid into Gaza. Allowing displaced Palestinians to return to their homes in northern Gaza and starting a 3-5 year reconstruction plan for the region, backed by the United States, Europe, and international institutions". The survey also found a 53% sum total majority support for withdrawing military aid from Israel if it rejected the ceasefire proposal, including 70% of Democrats, 51% of Independents, 53% of swing voters, and 35% of Republicans, with 36% being against it.[279][280]
According to a Chicago Council on Global Affairs poll released on August 6, 2024, and conducted online between June 21 and July 1, 55% of all sum total respondents oppose using US troops to defend Israel if it is attacked by a neighboring country, whereas 41% support it.[281][282][283]
Israeli officials
Some Israeli government members believed that Biden's support for Israel was not strong enough. In an interview with the Wall Street Journal, Israel's Minister of National Security Itamar Ben-Gvir stated, "Instead of giving us his full backing, Biden is busy with giving humanitarian aid and fuel [to Gaza], which goes to Hamas. If Trump was in power, the U.S. conduct would be completely different."[284] Israel's Minister of Finance Bezalel Smotrich stated Biden was involved in an anti-Semitic lie for issuing sanctions against violent West Bank settlers.[285][a] Following comments by Biden in March 2024 that Israel's killing of civilians was "hurting Israel more than helping", the Israeli prime minister Netanyahu stated this was "false" and "wrong".[287] After a speech by Chuck Schumer calling for new elections after the war, Likud released a statement, saying, "Senator Schumer is expected to respect Israel's elected government and not undermine it. This is always true and even more so in wartime."[288]
On 27 March, Ben-Gvir stated, "Biden prefers the line of Rashida Tlaib and Sinwar to the line of Benjamin Netanyahu and Ben-Gvir. I would have expected the president of the United States not to take their line, but rather to take ours."[289] Following reports the U.S. was considering sanctions against an IDF unit charged with human rights abuses, the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called the sanctions the "height of absurdity and a moral low".[290] Diaspora Minister Amichai Chikli stated, "If I were an American citizen with the right to vote, I’d vote for Trump and Republicans".[291] In response to the Biden administration stating it was considering halting weapons transfers to Israel for its Rafah offensive, Ben-Gvir tweeted, "Hamas loves Biden".[292] In June 2024, Netanyahu criticized the Biden administration for what he called a "dramatic drop" in weapons deliveries.[293]
Senior Israeli officials stated that Donald Trump's campaign promise to quickly end the war in Gaza would cause challenges for the Israeli government if he were to win the 2024 election, due to Israel's "internal political constraints to ending the war quickly".[294]
The United Nations General Assembly on 27 October 2023 voted a non-binding resolution calling for a humanitarian ceasefire to enable relief to enter Gaza; the United States stood with Israel in rejecting the proposal. The previous week, Washington had vetoed a resolution similar to this one at the more powerful UN Security Council.[295] Email correspondence between the Pentagon and White House in October 2023, however, showed U.S. officials were concerned about the risk of Israeli war crimes.[296]
Democratic congressman Andre Carson of Indiana wrote to The Guardian, accusing Israel of "war crimes" and citing the Israeli Defence Forces' (IDF) alleged use of white phosphorus and this week's deadly bombing of the Jabalia refugee camp. "I am very concerned that our taxpayer dollars may be used for violations of human rights," Carson wrote.[297] The Biden administration declared earlier that week that it was not imposing any restrictions on Israel's use of the US-supplied weapons. According to Pentagon spokesman Sabrina Singh, "That is really up to the Israel Defense Force to use in how they are going to conduct their operations... But we’re not putting any constraints on that."[298]
Like Carson, Democratic representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, particularly mentioned the alleged use of white phosphorus, as asserted by Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch (HRW), as a violation that should bar Israel from getting aid from the US. "Deployment of white phosphorus near populated civilian areas is a war crime," she said.[299]
Following reports that the U.S. State Department had not found Israel's assurances of following international law credible, William Hartung wrote that State Department staffers' "desires to align U.S. actions with U.S.and international law have been firmly rebuffed by the Biden administration’s leadership team".[300] In August 2024, the Quincy Institute published a list of twenty instances in which Israel used U.S. weapons to commit likely war crimes.[301]Bryan Finucane warned the U.S. could be complicit if Israel used its weapons to commit war crimes.[302]
Some scholars believe that America is complicit in an alleged genocide committed by Israel against the Palestinians.[303][304][305] Lawyers of the Center for Constitutional Rights warned the Biden administration that they could be held liable "for their failure to prevent Israel's unfolding genocide, as well as for their complicity, by encouraging it and materially supporting it".[306] In November 2023, president Joe Biden was nicknamed "Genocide Joe" by critics of his support for Israel.[307] National Security Council spokesman John Kirby, described by Israeli media outlet Ynet as "an exceptionally accomplished Israeli advocate,"[308] said "Israel's trying to defend itself against a genocidal terrorist threat. So if we're going to start using that word, fine, let's use it appropriately."[307] While suing Joe Biden as the largest provider of military aid to Israel, the Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR) argued that "the United States has the means available to have a deterrent effect on Israeli officials now pursuing genocidal acts against the Palestinian people in Gaza."[309] In a declaration in the lawsuit, Genocide scholar William Schabas said that in his view there was a "serious risk of genocide" and that the US was "in breach of its obligation" under the 1948 Genocide Convention and international law.[310][311]Rashida Tlaib, a Democratic representative of Michigan, accused Joe Biden of supporting the "genocide of the Palestinian people".[312]
Following the veto of another resolution in the UN Council on December 8, 2023, international human rights organizations issued the following statement: "By continuing to provide Israel with weapons [and] diplomatic cover as it commits atrocities, including collectively punishing the Palestinian civilian population in Gaza, the US risks complicity in war crimes."[8]
During an August 2024 meeting with humanitarian aid organizations, U.S. diplomat Lise Grande reportedly responded to concerns about Israel's international humanitarian law violations by responding that Israel was too close an ally for the United States to cease sending weapons.[313] In September 2024, a ProPublica investigation found that USAID and other agencies found that Israel had deliberately blocked humanitarian aid, but that the U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken had rejected their findings.[314]
Democrats argue that the $14.3 billion package the White House has promised Israel violates the Leahy Act because most of the victims of Israel's attacks on Gaza are civilians. The act forbids the US State and Defence departments from providing security support to foreign governments that are suspected of violating human rights. The act's proponents refer to the increasing number of Gaza residents losing their lives as a result of military operations, the forced relocation of over a million people, and the escalating humanitarian situation following Israeli authorities' cuts to the region's supplies of fuel, food, water, and electricity.[299] A group of top U.S. House Democrats urged the president to enforce the Leahy Laws.[320]
Usamah Andrabi, Justice Democrats' director of communications – said “I think the Leahy Act should absolutely be looked into right now, when we are seeing gross violations of human rights,” he said. “[The Israelis] are targeting refugee camps, hospitals, mosques all under the guise of self-defense or that one or other member of Hamas is hiding there. It doesn't matter whether Hamas is there or not, because you are targeting civilians. No amount of tax dollars should be justified for that.”[299]
Charles O. Blaha, the former director of the State Department's Office of Security and Human Rights, wrote in Just Security, stating that the U.S. secretary of state's decision not to issue sanctions on the IDF's Netzah Yehuda Battalion appeared to be "directly contrary to the Leahy law".[321] Stacy Gilbert, a former-State Department official, stated, "It is widely known and documented in the humanitarian community and the US government that Israel has been blocking humanitarian assistance since the start of the Gaza conflict".[322]
Raed Jarrar, director of advocacy at DAWN, an American nonprofit that fights for democracy and human rights in the Arab world, supported Palestinians who sued the State Department over US aid to the Israeli military, and called on the government to follow the Leahy law.[323]
Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin speaks at the AIPAC Political Leadership Forum in Washington, D.C., 2023
On 30 October 2023, AIPAC, a leading pro-Israel lobbying group, issued a public critique of the members of Congress who voted against House Resolution 771, which expressed support for Israel. In response, Republican Thomas Massie defended his vote by saying he objected to a broad "open-ended promise of military support," while Democrats Cori Bush, Mark Pocan and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez accused AIPAC of harming US democracy.[324][325][326] On November 1, Ilhan Omar accused AIPAC of running Islamophobic ads against her.[327] On November 2, Rashida Tlaib, who is of Palestinian descent, was the target of a $100,000 TV ad campaign by the Democratic Majority for Israel.[328]
The Republican-controlled House of Representatives on December 5 passed a resolution that included language that said the House "clearly and firmly states that anti-Zionism is antisemitism". The resolution also condemned the slogan "From the river to the sea,"[329] for which Tlaib was censured on November 5.[330] Analysis from The Guardian showed that congress members who were supportive of Israel from the war's start had received an average of $100,000 more from pro-Israel donors than their pro-Palestinian colleagues.[331] Analysis of Federal Election Commission filings showed House Speaker Mike Johnson received $95,000 from AIPAC.[332]
In March 2024, a group of 20 progressive political organizations formed an anti-AIPAC coalition to push back against the lobbyist group's influence on U.S. politics.[333] In response to comments by Senator Chuck Schumer that Israel needed new elections to replace Netanyahu, J Street stated the speech "signals a historic shift from those in the Democratic party who care deeply about Israel's future".[334]Haaretz found that hundreds of fake social media accounts were targeting Democratic Party lawmakers with messages repeating Israeli government accusations relating to UNRWA and Hamas.[335]Haaretz found Israel targeted U.S. lawmakers with an influence campaign, primarily focused on Black politicians.[336] In July 2024, a group of more than 30 human rights organizations requested the Biden administration investigate these influence campaigns.[337]Politico found that AIPAC was the largest source of Republican donors' money spent in 2024 Democratic primary races.[338]
In an early June 2024 interview by the former Fox News host Tucker Carlson, the Republican U.S. RepresentativeThomas Massie stated that the American Israel Public Affairs Committee has designated representatives assigned to each Republican member of Congress to ensure that the lawmakers vote for bills that Israel supports. He also questioned why the lobby group and their representatives are not required to register as foreign agents, which would be the case for those advocating on behalf of all other countries.[339][340][341]
Military support
Weapons transfers
The Biden administration caused controversy after bypassing Congress on multiple occasions to authorize arms sales to the Israeli military.[342] Unlike the United States' military support for Ukraine, details of weapons sent to Israel have been vague.[343] Leaked details have shown that the U.S. has sent laser-guided missiles, 155mm shells, new army vehicles, among others, at Israel's request.[344] According to the Costs of War Project at Brown University, the United States spent $17.9 billion on military aid to Israel from October 2023 to October 2024.[345][18]
In December 2023, the WSJ report stated that US arms shipments to Israel since the start of the war included 15,000 bombs and 57,000 155mm artillery shells. The United States also delivered 100 BLU-109bunker buster bombs, 5,000 unguided Mk82 bombs, more than 5,400 Mk84 bombs, about 1,000 small diameter GBU-39 bombs, and approximately 3,000 JDAM guidance kits.[48]
An investigation by The Guardian found the U.S. government was using special mechanisms to protect Israel from domestic human rights laws to continue sending weapons.[346] Following a trip to Washington D.C. in June 2024, Israeli defense minister Yoav Gallant addressed Israeli complaints about slowed arms transfers, stating, "Obstacles were removed and bottlenecks were addressed".[347] A report by ProPublica found the U.S. State Department had ignored reports about potential human rights violations by the Israeli army to continue weapons transfers to Israel.[348] Current and former State Department officials stated there were more than 500 reports of Israel using U.S. weapons to cause "unnecessary harm to civilians" in the Gaza Strip, but that no action had yet been taken on any of the reports.[349]
Unnamed officials stated in March 2024 that the U.S. had signed off on an additional 1,800 MK84 2,000-pound bombs and 500 MK82 500-pound bombs.[350] In May 2024, Israel used two U.S. made GBU-39 missiles during the Tel al-Sultan massacre.[351] In June 2024, two U.S. officials stated the United States had transferred ten thousand 2,000-pound bombs and thousands of Hellfire missiles to Israel since 7 October.[352] In late-June 2024, an Israeli official stated the Biden administration would soon transfer a delayed shipment of 500 pound bombs to Israel.[353] In mid-July 2024, a U.S. official confirmed that the United States was resuming its transfers of 500 pound bombs to Israel.[354]
In August 2024, the Biden administration approved a $20 billion arms sale to Israel, including F-15 fighter jets and tank and mortar shells.[355] The United States approved a $165 million sale of military tank trailers, including replacement parts, tool kits, and logistics support.[356]
Protests against transfers
Demonstration outside Raytheon's office in Goleta, California to protest the military contractor's supply of weapons to Israel, 9 November 2023
Josh Paul, a senior State Department official specializing in arms transfers, resigned after stating the U.S. government continues to sell weapons to Israel despite its record of human rights abuses.[357][358]
A group of seven U.S. senators stated that the Biden administration was in violation of the Foreign Assistance Act, which stipulates that weapons cannot be transferred to governments blocking humanitarian assistance.[367] Senator Chris Van Hollen called on Biden to cease weapons transfers, stating, "We need the president and the Biden administration to push harder and to use all the levers of US policy to ensure people don't die of starvation".[368]
In June 2024, the NAACP called on the Biden administration to stop sending weapons to Israel.[369]
In July 2024, a group of U.S. doctors and nurses returning from Gaza stated they had witnessed widespread war crimes committed by the Israeli army and called on the United States to implement an arms embargo.[370] In October 2024, a majority of all American doctors who had volunteered in Gaza in the prior year signed a letter to the Biden administration calling for an arms embargo.[371] Later the same month, the editorial board of the Financial Times called for an U.S. arms embargo on Israel, stating, "Biden has the tools to rein in Netanyahu. He must halt the offensive arms sales to Israel that enable its relentless bombing of Gaza and Lebanon."[372]
Naval and air support
The United States has provided naval and aerial support to Israel on multiple occasions since October 2023. In April 2024, U.S. fighter jets, along with the U.K., France, and Jordan, shot down Iranian drones and missiles directed at Israel.[373] In June 2024, the United States sent the USS Wasp and its marines aboard to serve as a deterrent to Hezbollah in its conflict with Israel.[374] In August 2024, the United States deployed the USS Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group, equipped with stealth F-35C Lightning II combat jets, and the ballistic missile submarine USS Georgia, to Israel.[375]
In October 2024, the United States deployed the Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense, along with 100 U.S. troops to Israel.[376] That same month, an investigation using available open source data found that U.S. aircraft were responsible for 33 percent of reconnaissance flights, providing Israel with intelligence on ground movements in the Gaza Strip.[377] In November 2024, the United States ordered ballistic missile defense destroyers, a fighter squadron, tanker aircraft, and Air Force B-52 long-range strike bombers to "make clear" to Iran that the U.S. would "take every measure necessary to defend" its interests in the region.[378]
In response to the United States's involvement, U.S. Representatives Rashida Tlaib and Cori Bush wrote a letter to the Biden Administration asking for an explanation as to the country's participation in Israel's military engagements and suggesting such collaboration was unauthorized and unconstitutional.[379]
The "Antisemitism Awareness Act", spearheaded by the Republicans but also backed by many Democrats, passed the United States House of Representatives in a 320–91 vote on May 1, 2024, and proceeded to the Senate.[380][381] The bill is intended to add the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance's approved working definition of antisemitism to title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits "exclusion from participation in, denial of benefits of, and discrimination under federally assisted programs on ground of race, color, or national origin".[382] Democratic representative Sara Jacobs, who is Jewish, said she opposed the bill because "it fails to effectively address the very real rise of antisemitism, all while defunding colleges and universities across the country and punishing many, if not all, of the non-violent protestors speaking out against the Israeli military’s conduct."[383]
The proposed legislation would broaden the legal definition of antisemitism to include Anti-Zionism, criticism of the policies of the state of Israel, and concerns about Palestinian human rights, categorizing all of them as hate speech. It has been criticized for conflating "Judaism with Zionism in assuming that all Jews are Zionists". It faces strong opposition from several Democratic lawmakers, Jewish organizations, and free speech advocates, including more than 800 Jewish U.S. academics, who signed a letter calling on Biden not to sign the bill. Jeremy Ben-Ami, president of the centrist pro-Israel group J Street, said that his organization opposes the bill because it is an "unserious" effort led by Republicans "to continually force votes that divide the Democratic caucus on an issue that shouldn’t be turned into a political football". The American Civil Liberties Union meanwhile sees the bill as an attack on First Amendment rights and argues that its "overbroad" definition of antisemitism "could result in colleges and universities suppressing a wide variety of speech critical of Israel or in support of Palestinian rights in an effort to avoid investigations by the Department [of Education] and the potential loss of funding".
Some Republicans have criticized the bill stating that the definition of the bill could have the unintended consequence of making some verses in the New Testament illegal. Matt Gaetz, a Republican representative from Florida, called the bill a “ridiculous hate speech bill”. He went on to say that “this legislation is written without regard for the Constitution, common sense, or even the common understanding of the meaning of words.”[384]
Eva Borgwardt, the political director of IfNotNow, a progressive Jewish organization, stated: "The White House and many in the US government are clear as they should be that 1,000 Israelis killed is too many, Our question for them is: How many Palestinian deaths are too many?"[389]
Alexandra Rojas, the executive director of Justice Democrats, begged the president to take immediate action to stop a ground invasion that would "ensure thousands more civilian casualties, bring us closer to an all-out regional conflict in the Middle East, and thrust the United States into another endless war" in a statement released amid increasing bombing and a communications blackout in Gaza.[389]
A Quinnipiac study done following the Israel-Hamas war revealed that 76 percent of voters believed supporting Israel is in the national interest of the United States, and 64 percent approved of sending weapons and military equipment to Israel. This support was more pronounced among older age groups, with 51% of those under 35 disapproving of this action.[389][390]
Democrats' opinion of Biden's job dropped by 11 percent during October 2023. According to Gallup, Biden alienated some members of his own party with his swift and decisive show of support for Israel.[201]
US Republican Congressman and former aide to Donald Trump, Max Miller, speaking at Fox News stated that Palestine is "about to get eviscerated... to turn that into a parking lot". He had previously called on the Biden administration "to get out of Israel's way and to let Israel do what it needs to do best". He said that there should be "no rules of engagement" during Israel's bombardment of Gaza.[391]
On November 1, 2023, the Republican representative, Brian Mast, compared all Palestinians to Nazis on the House floor.[392]
A team of legal experts alerted the Biden administration and the ICC prosecutor that the U.S. government might be legally implicated in Israel's ongoing war against the Palestinians.[32]
The executive director of DAWN, Sarah Leah Whitson, stated that Biden's funding request "isn't just giving a green light for ethnic cleansing—it's bankrolling it."[393]
Barack Obama in an interview emphasized "nobody's hands are clean."[394]
The Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR) sued Joe Biden and two of his cabinet colleagues (On behalf of Palestinian human rights organizations, Palestinians living in Gaza, and US citizens with family in the besieged region) for their failure to stop and aiding and abetting "genocide" in Gaza. US citizen Laila al-Haddad, one of the case's plaintiffs (who has lost five relatives in Gaza as a result of Israel's attacks) said: "I paid for Israel to kill my cousins and my aunt, there's no two ways around it, It was my tax dollars that did that."[9]
In November 2023, Bin Laden's "Letter to the American people," published in 2002, went viral on TikTok and other social media. In the letter, Bin Laden denounced numerous acts of American aggression such as U.S. support for Israel, and supported al-Qaeda's war against the U.S. as a defensive struggle. Numerous social media users, including Americans, expressed their opposition to US foreign policy by widely sharing the letter and its contents. The letter was removed from The Guardian website after more than 20 years of being present online in the news outlet's webpage, and TikTok began issuing takedowns of videos featuring the letter.[395][396][397] Reporting in The Washington Post suggested that the virality of the letter had been limited prior to media coverage, having never trended on TikTok, that many of the TikTok videos covering the letter were critical of bin Laden, and that the media coverage had exaggerated its significance and elevated the virality of the letter.[398]
December reactions
A December 19 New York Times/Siena College poll found 57 percent of Americans disapproved of Joe Biden's handling of the conflict, with a plurality supporting Israel ending its military actions to protect civilians. Three quarters of 18-to-29 year olds disapproved of Biden's handling, with half saying Israel was intentionally killing civilians and three-fourths saying it was not taking enough precautions for civilians.[399]
Former Republican RepresentativeMichele Bachmann appearing in The Charlie Kirk Show stated "So, it's time that Gaza ends. The two million people who live there – they are clever assassins. They need to be removed from that land. That land needs to be turned into a national park. And since they're the voluntary mercenaries for Iran, they need to be dropped on the doorstep of Iran. Let Iran deal with those people." She received a round of applause from the audience, while Kirk replied "I look at Israel and Israel says we never want another person into our country that doesn't share our values," Kirk said. "They said they don't want refugees. They don't want any of these people. I want American immigration policy to be like that."[401][402]
Tariq Habash, a policy adviser at the US Department of Education resigned, stating, "I cannot represent an administration that systematically dehumanizes Palestinians and enables their ethnic cleansing."[403]
Harvard University political scientist Stephen Walt stated, "Biden looks heartless or clueless (or both) and many see him as no better than Trump."[404]
The Center for Civilians in Conflict called the failure of Sanders' resolution to investigate Israeli compliance with international law by 72-to-11 "deeply disappointing".[405]
Aaron David Miller, a former-State Department official, stated Joe Biden's policies had turned the United States into "Israel's lawyer".[406]
According to the poll conducted by the Harvard CAPS–Harris Poll on 17–18 January 2024, 67% of American respondents said that a ceasefire in Gaza should only happen after all Israeli hostages are released and Hamas is removed from power. 74% of American respondents believed that the Hamas attack was genocidal, while 34% of respondents believed that Israel was committing genocide.[407]
An Economist/YouGov poll found 49 percent of 18-29-year-olds agreed with the statement that Israel is committing genocide, and 49 percent of registered Democrats also agreeing that Israel was committing genocide.[408]
In an op-ed, Bernie Sanders wrote, "The United States must stop asking Israel to do the right thing. It's time to start telling Israel it must do these things or it will lose our support."[409]
On January 31, 2024, the Republican representative Brian Mast said that Palestinian babies are not innocent civilians but "terrorists" who should be killed, that more infrastructure in Gaza needs to be destroyed, and that "It would be better if you kill all the terrorists and kill everyone who are supporters."[413]
February reactions
Polling by the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research found 50 percent of U.S. adults believed that Israel's offensive in Gaza had gone too far.[414]
Joe Biden faced large protests during campaign stops in Michigan, with one demonstrator stating, "There is nothing that will ever make me vote for a genocidal president, ever."[415]
An NBC News poll found only 15 percent of under-35-year-old voters approved of Biden's approach to the war, with 70 percent disapproving.[416]
The council of bishops of the African Methodist Episcopal Church called on the U.S. to immediately cease funding Israel or providing other support, stating, "After this torture, they plan to murder them. The United States of America will have likely paid for the weapons they use. This must not be allowed to happen."[421]
The director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, Nihad Awad, stated, "President Biden should stop acting like Benjamin Netanyahu's defense lawyer and start acting like the President of the United States".[422]
Professor Stephen Zunes stated Biden's Gaza policy was even more unpopular amongst young voters than Nixon's Vietnam War policy had been in the 1970s.[423]A vigil to Aaron Bushnell held outside of the Israeli embassy on February 26, 2024
On 25 February 2024, Aaron Bushnell, a 25-year-old serviceman of the United States Air Force, committed an act of self-immolation outside the front gate of the Embassy of Israel in Washington, D.C. in protest of the ongoing US support of the war. He declared that he "will no longer be complicit in genocide" before dousing himself in flammable liquid and setting himself on fire. He repeatedly shouted "Free Palestine" as he was burning. After first responders extinguished the flames, he was taken to a local hospital in critical condition where he later died.[424][425][426][427] Commenting on the incident, Pentagon Press Secretary Patrick S. Ryder reaffirmed US support for Israel's operations.[428]
UCLA professor Dov Waxman stated, "It is telling that most American voters – both Democrats and Republicans – don't approve, according to the surveys, of the way that President Biden's been handling this war".[429]
March reactions
Former-Ambassador Robert Stephen Ford stated that the U.S. being forced to deliver aid by airdrop was the "worst humilitation" of the U.S. by Israel he had ever seen, aside from the USS Liberty incident.[430]
A Gallup poll found positive opinions of Israel dropped from 64 percent to 38 percent amongst people aged 18-to-34.[268]
The Arab American Institute condemned Congress' ban on UNRWA funding, stating, "Our political process has chosen to cut US funding to literally the only entity that can address the level of suffering and scale of suffering that's happening in Gaza right now".[434]
In an interview with Fox News on March 5, 2024, the former president and presumptive Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump stated that Joe Biden "dumped Israel" due to being overly influenced by pro-Palestinian protests, that "The Democrats are very bad for Israel," that he supports Israel's ongoing offensive on Gaza in which Israel has to "finish the problem", and that the Biden administration "got soft". Trump's campaign also said that, if elected again, he would bar Gaza residents from entering the U.S. as part of an expanded travel ban, which commentators has viewed as a call to continue and "double down" on genocidal acts. In another interview with Fox News, Benjamin Netanyahu said "I appreciate President Trump's tremendous support for Israel."[435]
Donald Trump later also stated that "Israel has to be very careful because you're losing a lot of the world, you're losing a lot of support."[436]
Donald Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner, senior foreign policy adviser under Trump's presidency, stated that "Gaza's waterfront property could be very valuable", that Israel should bulldoze an area of the Negev desert and move Palestinians there, and that the Palestinians having their own state is "a super bad idea" that "would essentially be rewarding an act of terror".[437]
In a town hall meeting on March 25, 2024, the Republican US House representative Tim Walberg of Michigan stated that Palestinian civilians should have nuclear weapons used against them, "like Nagasaki and Hiroshima" (the Japanese cities where the US dropped atomic bombs at the end of World War Two, killing hundreds of thousands of people) in order to “Get it over quick.”[438][439][440]
A group of eight Democrat senators led by Bernie Sanders, Jeff Merkley, and Chris Van Hollen issued an official letter to President Joe Biden, calling on him to "enforce federal law" by requiring Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu "to stop restricting humanitarian aid access to Gaza or forfeit U.S. military aid to Israel" as "The severe humanitarian catastrophe unfolding in Gaza is nearly unprecedented in modern history" and "The United States should not provide military assistance to any country that interferes with U.S. humanitarian assistance." They cited the 1961 Foreign Assistance Act, which states that "no assistance" shall be provided under that law or the Arms Export Control Act to any country that restricts, directly or indirectly, the transport or delivery of U.S. humanitarian assistance. "Stopping American humanitarian aid is in violation of the law. That should be clear. No more money to Netanyahu's war machine to kill Palestinian children," Sanders said.[441]
Twenty-eight of the 61 nominated authors withdrew their books from consideration in the annual PEN America Awards ceremony as they condemned America's Pen for failing to strongly condemn what they called the genocide in Palestine.[443]
On May 22, 2024, William Lawrence, an international relations professor at American University, stated, "From a Palestinian perspective, it’s absolutely clear the US is doing next to nothing to save them from the onslaught of the Israeli forces".[446]
In June 2024, Marwan Bishara, the senior analyst at Al Jazeera English, stated it was "surrealistic" to hear the U.S. Secretary of State describe conditions in Gaza as if people there "were not killed by American ammunition, as if the United States did not block every attempt at an immediate and permanent ceasefire in the past three months".[447]
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson described Israel's actions in Gaza as "genocidal".[448]
In an op-ed in Vanity Fair, Ta-Nehisi Coates criticized the Democratic Party's continued support of Israel's actions in Gaza, writing, "The most destructive bombs that have actualized this rhetoric of extermination are being furnished by America, and more specifically, by the head of the Democratic Party."[449]
In September 2024, Sarah Leah Whitson argued in Foreign Policy that US non-compliance with Israel-related orders of the International Court of Justice and US attacks on the International Criminal Court, after its chief investigator's application for arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Gallant, was undermining international law globally, by modeling and legitimizing a pick-and-choose approach to compliance.[450]
Outside the U.S.
Iranian officials claimed on October 30 that attacks against U.S. forces in Iraq and other parts of the region were the consequence of "wrong American policies," which included Washington's backing of Israel in its war against Hamas.[451]
Abdul-Malik al-Houthi, the commander of the Houthi movement in Yemen, declared on October 10 that his organization would retaliate by using missiles and drones in addition to other military measures if the United States got involved in the Gaza conflict.[452]
According to Agnès Callamard, Secretary-General of Amnesty International, in the face of a staggering death toll, the US vetoing another UN Security Council ceasefire resolution "displays a callous disregard for civilian suffering". In addition, Washington "has brazenly wielded and weaponized its veto to strongarm the UN Security Council, further undermining its credibility and ability to live up to its mandate to maintain international peace and security," according to the statement.[8]
In February 2024, Callamard responded to the U.S. vetoing another ceasefire resolution at the UN Security Council stating, "When the US could do the right thing: protect Palestinians against serious risks of genocide; respect international law and universality; prevent massive killings and sufferings – it chose the opposite path".[453]
The executive director of Doctors Without Borders, Avril Benoit, states: "By vetoing this resolution, the US stands alone in casting its vote against humanity. The US veto stands in sharp contrast to the values it professes to uphold. By continuing to provide diplomatic cover for the ongoing atrocities in Gaza, the US is signaling that international humanitarian law can be applied selectively — and that the lives of some people matter less than the lives of others …. The US veto makes it complicit in the carnage in Gaza."[8]
International rights groups said in a statement:"By continuing to provide military and diplomatic support to Israel as it commits atrocities, including the collective punishment of Palestinian civilians in Gaza, the US is complicit in war crimes."[7][454]
In response to Biden stating Israel's actions were "over the top," the EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell stated, "If you believe that too many people are being killed, maybe you should provide less arms in order to prevent so many people being killed."[455]
A Pew Research poll showed that most foreign countries disapprove of the way the US president is handling Israel's war in Gaza.[456]
↑ Smotrich later stated the sanctions were designed to create a "Palestinian terror state".[286]
Related Research Articles
The year 2023 in Israel was defined first by wide-scale protests against a proposed judicial reform, and then by the Hamas-led attack on Israel on October 7, which led to a war and to Israel invading the Gaza Strip.
Events in the year 2023 in Palestine.
The Gaza war, also known as the Israel–Hamas war or the Israel–Gaza war, has been fought between Israel and Hamas-led Palestinian militant groups in the Gaza Strip and Israel since 7 October 2023. It is the fifth war since 2008 in the Gaza–Israel conflict, and the most significant military engagement in the region since the Yom Kippur War in 1973. The first day of the war was the deadliest for Israel, and it is the deadliest war for Palestinians in the history of the conflict, sparking an ongoing Middle Eastern crisis.
On 7 October 2023, a large escalation of the Gaza–Israel conflict began with a coordinated offensive by multiple Palestinian militant groups against Israel. A number of countries, including many of Israel's Western allies, such as the United States and a number of European countries, condemned the attacks by Hamas, expressed solidarity for Israel and stated that Israel has a right to defend itself from armed attacks, while countries of the Muslim world have expressed support for the Palestinians, blaming the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories as being the root cause for the escalation of violence. The events prompted several world leaders to announce their intention to visit Israel, including US President Joe Biden, French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, and British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.
The outbreak of the Gaza war led to an increased dislike of Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the government from Israeli citizens due to a perceived failure of leadership on the issue, with increased calls for Netanyahu's resignation.
The Gaza war sparked a major diplomatic crisis, with many countries around the world reacting strongly to the conflict that affected the momentum of regional relations. At least nine countries took the drastic step of recalling their ambassadors or cutting diplomatic ties with Israel. The conflict has also resulted in a renewed focus on a two-state solution to the ongoing conflict.
During the Gaza war, calls for a ceasefire have been a common feature of international reactions to the conflict. Many international actors perceived an urgent need for a ceasefire due to the severity of the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and the increasing death toll of civilians, primarily due to the Israeli blockade and invasion of the Gaza Strip. Notably, the leaders of some European governments that generally support Israel in the Israeli–Palestinian conflict were among the voices calling for a ceasefire, including France, Spain, Portugal and Ireland, alongside Turkey, Russia, Egypt, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia, among others.
A temporary ceasefire between Israel and Hamas-led Palestinian militant groups in the Gaza Strip took effect from 24 November 2023 to 30 November 2023, during the Gaza war.
Events of the year 2024 in Israel.
United Nations Security Council Resolution 2720, adopted on 22 December 2023, called for increased aid for the 2023 Gaza humanitarian crisis, including the provisioning of fuel, food, and medical supplies. It also explicitly demanded the opening of all Gaza border crossings to humanitarian aid, including the Kerem Shalom border crossing, and proposed the immediate appointment of a Senior Humanitarian and Reconstruction Coordinator for Gaza. The resolution received approval from 13 members, while Russia and the United States abstained from voting.
As a result of the Gaza war, nationwide protests have occurred across Israel, including rallies, demonstrations, campaigns, and vigils. These demonstrations occurred as part of broader war-related protests occurring worldwide. Israelis domestically and abroad have primarily called for the return of hostages held by Hamas.
Events in the year 2024 in Palestine.
Israel has been accused of committing genocide in the Gaza war, and the United States has been accused of complicity in the Gaza genocide. The complicity accusation has been made in court, by federal staffers, human rights organizations and academic figures around the world. The US has also been accused of enabling the Gaza Strip famine.
The Gaza war has had significant effects on some major European Union member countries and institutions.
Following the outbreak of the Gaza war on 7 October 2023, the United Kingdom has provided Israel with extensive military and diplomatic support. In response to the 7 October attacks, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak asserted that the United Kingdom "unequivocally" stands with Israel. The UK also issued an "unequivocal condemnation" of Palestinian militant group Hamas and deployed British Armed Forces personnel and assets to the Eastern Mediterranean to support Israel.
A proposed armistice and hostages/prisoners exchange to end the Gaza war was agreed to by Israel and Hamas on 15 January 2025, and came into effect on 19 January. The proposal was first drafted by mediators from the United States, Egypt and Qatar, accepted by Hamas on 5 May 2024 and presented by U.S. president Joe Biden on 31 May. By January 2025, a similar proposal had been agreed to by both Israel and Hamas. The proposal is a serial initiative in three stages, beginning with a six-week ceasefire, the release of all Israelis being held hostage in Gaza in exchange for some of the Palestinians being held by Israel, a permanent ceasefire, Israel's withdrawal from Gaza, and a reconstruction process lasting from three to five years.
United Nations Security Council Resolution 2735, adopted on 10 June 2024, calls on Hamas to accept a proposed hostage and ceasefire agreement in the ongoing Israel–Hamas war. The resolution, presented by the United States, details the three-phase proposal and notes Israel's acceptance thereof. The implementation of the described agreement would result in the release of all hostages held by Hamas, establish a permanent ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and advance a multi-year reconstruction plan. Additionally, the resolution rejects any demographic or territorial changes in the Gaza Strip and reaffirms the Security Council's support for a two-state solution, envisioning the unification of the Gaza Strip and the West Bank under Palestinian Authority governance.
Since 7 October 2023, several countries such as Italy, Japan, Spain, Canada, the Netherlands and Belgium have ceased the sale of weapons to Israel. Key U.S. allies such as Britain and France are debating it. However the United States and Germany as the major suppliers of Israel's arms imports keep supplying lethal weapons in spite of growing criticism of the mounting civilian casualties.
The Israeli generals' plan refers to a siege strategy proposed by former Israeli general Giora Eiland during the Israel–Hamas war. The plan would force the complete evacuation of Northern Gaza by labeling all remaining civilians as military targets and blocking supplies such as food and medication from entering the area.
1 2 "Israel and U.S. Face Growing Isolation as Deadly War in Gaza Continues With No End in Sight". Time. 12 December 2023. Archived from the original on 16 December 2023. Retrieved 16 December 2023. Israel and the United States were increasingly isolated as they faced global calls for a cease-fire in Gaza, including a non-binding vote expected to pass at the United Nations later on Tuesday. Israel has pressed ahead with an offensive against Gaza's Hamas rulers that it says could go on for weeks or months.
1 2 "U.S. and Israel increasingly isolated amid growing calls for a cease-fire". NBC News. 13 December 2023. Retrieved 16 December 2023. As the Israeli military expands its military operations in Gaza, NBC News' Hala Gorani reports on the Israel Defense Forces latest offensive against Hamas and how the U.S. and Israel are becoming increasingly isolated internationally amid growing calls for a cease-fire.
↑ Abu Shahma, Mohammad; Asrar, Shakeeb; Antonopoulos, Konstantinos. "Under the rubble: The missing in Gaza". aljazeera.com. Al Jazeera. Archived from the original on 6 March 2024. Retrieved 5 March 2024.
↑ Khouri, Rami (11 August 2024). "AIPAC is growing desperate". Aljazeera. Retrieved 12 August 2024. The pro-Israel lobby is finding it harder and harder to confront a growing shift in American public opinion on Israel-Palestine.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
