Netanyahu has pushed Biden, a lifelong self-proclaimed and proven Zionist, to the point where he has been forced, and I do mean forced, to clarify that supporting Israel’s prime minister is no longer
President Joe Biden’s decision to have the United States abstain, and thus allow passage of the United Nations Security Council resolution calling for a ceasefire in Gaza was the right call. The resolution demands an immediate ceasefire and the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages. By allowing the resolution to pass the U.S. has staked out a position in favor of ending this horrible war, and in opposition to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s prioritization of his political well-being over the current and future good of Israelis and Palestinians alike.
Since the horrific attacks of Oct. 7 and the subsequent Israeli retaliation on Gaza, the U.S. has maintained its traditional role of backstopping Israel at the UN by vetoing three previous ceasefire resolutions. Biden has also continued to provide Israel with military aid, and, in an unprecedented move, sent U.S. aircraft carriers to the region to ensure that a wider conflict did not break out. All this despite hostility toward the Biden administration and the Israeli government’s abnegation of its responsibility for providing food, water, and medical care to those whose land it occupies.
It’s true, without the U.S. running diplomatic interference, there would be more than enough UN resolutions criticizing Israel to fill a very large storage facility. And even if you believe these are essentially toothless, the fact remains that the UN does express world opinion. The Obama administration’s abstention on a UN resolution demanding a halt to Israeli settlements is still used by the right to „prove“ that Democrats don’t really support Israel.
