The Biden administration opposes an Israeli invasion of Rafah, where more than 1.2 million displaced Palestinians are currently sheltering.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken issued harsh words for Israel, criticizing its operations in the Gaza Strip and saying it lacked a plan to protect civilian life ahead of an expected assault on the city of Rafah, where more than 1.2 million displaced Palestinians are sheltering.
“We believe two things,” Blinken said in an interview with CBS’ “Face The Nation” that aired Sunday.
“One, you have to have a clear, credible plan to protect civilians, which we haven’t seen. Second, we also need to see a plan for what happens after this conflict in Gaza is over, and we still haven’t seen that.”
The comments came against a backdrop of increasingly tense relations between Israel and its number one ally as the Biden administration last week confirmed it was pausing a shipment of 3,500 heavy-payload bombs to the Jewish state. It was the first ever such move by President Joe Biden, who has long been a staunch supporter of Israel. He confirmed that U.S. support still remains “ironclad.”
Administration officials say the move stemmed from concern over the use of the weapons — 1,000 and 2,000-pound bombs — on a densely populated area like Rafah, which is now completely surrounded by Israeli forces as its war-ravaged population grapples with military strikes, hunger, disease and a severe lack of sufficient humanitarian aid.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says that a Rafah ground assault is the only way to defeat Palestinian militant group Hamas, which governs the Strip and which launched a brutal terrorist attack on Israel on Oct.
