Time for Biden to get tough on Netanyahu

What is it about American Democratic presidents and red lines? Back in 2013, it was Barack Obama who found that his red line on Syria’s use of chemical weapons was actually more pink than red. Today, his then-vice president, Joe Biden, has forgotten the red line that he drew in March over an Israeli invasion of Rafah. Other international leaders also voiced their opposition but have gone mute when confronted with the reality.

That ground invasion is now in full swing. The propaganda merchants had portrayed last week’s initial forays as a limited operation. Aid agencies on the ground and Palestinian civilians hoped but never believed that was true.

US officials from the president down had talked the talk about opposing a Rafah invasion. Even last week, one spokesman stated that “any kind of major Rafah ground operation would actually strengthen” Hamas. This opposition was all half-hearted.

Palestinians and others can spot the hypocrisy of the US and other backers of Israel. They watch US actions, not words, just as they have learned to do with Israeli leaders. Yes, the US has just paused the transfer of some arms to Israel, including 3,500 bombs. The reality is that the US is still providing weapons, military assistance, vital intelligence and diplomatic cover. The trifling levels of US humanitarian assistance to Palestinians pale into insignificance compared to the billions Israel receives in lethal aid.

Remember too that the US led the Israel-inspired charge to defund UNRWA. If the Biden administration had said it would wait for Israel to provide evidence of any links between the UN agency and Hamas, it would still be receiving American aid today and no other donor state would have ever suspended their funding.

Palestinians and others can spot the hypocrisy of the US and other backers of Israel. They watch US actions, not words

Chris Doyle

Where Israel is concerned, accountability just does not come into the equation. What happened two years ago illustrates this with excruciating clarity. This was the Israeli killing, arguably murder, of the Al Jazeera journalist and US citizen Shireen Abu Akleh on May 11, 2022. The US demanded answers. Israel spun all sorts of stories, initially blaming a Palestinian gunman and then saying it did not know, before finally admitting it was an Israeli soldier’s bullet. As yet, nobody has been held accountable. What is Biden doing about it? Nothing. This was the leader who, in February, warned Iran: “If you harm an American, we will respond.” If Israeli soldiers can kill US citizens with impunity, what chance do Palestinians have?

Leaders often express “concern” or even “deep concern” about Israel’s conduct. They will call on Israel to adhere to international humanitarian law. But what never happens is an American, British or German leader stating unequivocally that Israel has violated international law. This has certainly been the case over the last seven months. The US administration last week stated that Israel had used American weapons in a way that was “inconsistent” with international humanitarian law. To a normal person, this means illegal, but heaven forbid this should be articulated.

British leaders have done cartwheels to avoid stating this. The deputy foreign minister said last week that the government had not seen a credible Israeli military plan for its invasion of Rafah that would adhere to international law. On May 7, the day after the ground invasion began, the minister stated: “We have not seen a credible plan for military action in Rafah so far, so we are not able to judge whether it would be in accordance with international humanitarian law.” In other words, because Britain has not been shown the military plan, it will not make any judgment on whether it is illegal or not. Israeli leaders were wise not to share it.

Congress has a brigade of supporters not just of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, but also of extremists like Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich. Channeling “The Sopranos” and “The Godfather,” a dirty dozen of US Republican senators signed a letter threatening the chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, Karim Khan, and his family with sanctions and travel bans. Khan’s crime? It was merely the rumor that he might seek arrest warrants for Israeli leaders on war crimes charges; in other words, doing his job.

Netanyahu has long since worked out how to play American presidents. He has done so ever since 1996 and even before. As US secretary of state under President George H.W. Bush, James Baker claims to have banned Netanyahu from the State Department. The Israeli PM has mastered the dark arts of deception, bluff and counter-bluff. He appreciates that, ultimately, given the makeup of US domestic politics, no American president is going to sever the umbilical cord that ties the country to Israel, not least in an election year.

Netanyahu has long since worked out how to play American presidents. He has done so ever since 1996 and even before

Chris Doyle

Despite rumors and briefings of an angry Biden, the reality is that, no matter how appalling the Israeli bombing and starvation of Palestinians in Gaza, the American president will not fundamentally shift his position. Every now and then, Netanyahu throws Biden a few crumbs, pretending he is listening. Following Biden’s pressure, Netanyahu did lift the total siege of Gaza to allow a few aid trucks in via Egypt last October. It cost Netanyahu nothing. Palestinians were not receiving anything like the level of lifesaving aid they required.

Biden has sanctioned a number of extremist Israeli settlers and settler groups. Two things stand out. Firstly, despite the decades of evidence of massive Israeli settler violence, this has never been done before. Secondly, the Israeli government’s reaction. Openly and without shame, the settler extremists in the Israeli coalition have ordered further settlement expansion and the authorization of outposts. The message is clear: if the US or anyone else tries to penalize Israel, it will punish the Palestinians.

If an American president truly wanted to shut down the illegal settlement enterprise, he has many options available. Bush did this by withholding US loan guarantees until Israel stopped building settlements. If Biden were to outlaw all funding from the US to settler groups, they would lose hundreds of millions of dollars.

For all the American green lights for Israel’s genocide in Gaza, the lack of any strategy is remarkable. The failure to get a ceasefire has isolated the US and smashed what is left of its reputation. It jeopardizes American strategic interests, as it risks getting sucked into a regional conflict it does not want and cannot afford. Biden is losing domestically as he is seen as weak and indecisive.

Above all, the US is isolated internationally. In Friday’s UN General Assembly vote on Palestinian statehood, the US and Israel lined up with just seven other states — including Micronesia, Nauru and Palau — to oppose the resolution. China and Russia cannot believe their luck at how their foe is committing such acute self-harm.

Biden needs to get tough with Netanyahu. The Israeli leader is prepared, solely for reasons of political self-preservation, to ignite the region, put hostages’ lives at risk and foment enduring generational hatred that, far from defeating or destroying Hamas, will strengthen it for years. It is time for Biden to stop indulging Netanyahu in the interests of the US, Israel and the Palestinians.

• Chris Doyle is director of the Council for Arab-British Understanding in London. X: @Doylech