US to pressure 'Israel' into a 'humanitarian pause' in Gaza: NYT

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: The New York Times
3 Nov 2023 01:10
2 Shares

During US Secretary of State Antony Blinken's visit to "Israel", calls for a "humanitarian pause" are anticipated.

President Joe Biden meets with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, on Wednesday, Oct. 18, 2023, in "Tel Aviv" (AP)

In a report, The New York Times (NYT) stated that US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is expected to "pressure the Israeli government to agree to a humanitarian pause in Gaza to allow for captives to be released safely and for humanitarian aid to be distributed," citing White House officials.

This comes after US President Joe Biden revealed on Wednesday that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu agreed to a brief pause on October 20, "to allow the release of two Americans, Judith Raanan, 59, and her daughter, Natalie Raanan, 17."

As reported by the NYT, calling for a "humanitarian pause" is on Blinken's agenda during his upcoming trip to "Israel" on Friday, while White House officials were cited clarifying that "the request for pauses was far different from an overall cease-fire, which the Biden administration believes would benefit Hamas by allowing it to recover from Israel’s intense bombardment."

Netanyahu to study possible 'humanitarian pause'

On another note, Israeli media reported on Thursday that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is studying the American request for a temporary ceasefire in Gaza.

A political commentator on the Israeli Kan channel, Gili Cohen, said Netanyahu is studying the American request, explaining that “this is a mission: what will the second party grant, in what reality, and in what framework?"

She added, "A political source told us that Israel might agree to stop the attacks, as he described it, for several hours."

For his part, Channel 12’s political affairs correspondent, Yaron Avraham, said the Americans feel that the Israeli plan is “vague and not adequately evaluated,” and they fear this stage.

Avraham pointed out that there is currently no talk of a humanitarian pause, explaining that “an Israeli source confirmed to us, and I say this with caution, that it seems that discussions will begin tomorrow with Blinken’s arrival about pauses, a short truce..."

In the same context, Channel 13's political analyst Rafif Drucker said, “Israel is not opposed to a kind of truce, for a short period of time,” pointing out that “there is no red line, as drawn by Israel, on the issue of fuel and matters like this, and I do not think Israel will turn the matter into a dispute with the United States."

Biden's foreign policy vs. the American public

It is worth highlighting that Biden is under pressure to act on the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, where all basic necessities have been banned and the Israeli aggression on Gaza is ongoing. On that note, the US pressure on "Israel" will unlikely satisfy Israeli critics and some members of the President's party.

"Several Democratic lawmakers in the House have introduced a resolution calling for an immediate de-escalation and cease-fire in Israel and occupied Palestine," according to the NYT, but US officials argue that more "humanitarian pauses" could address the "urgent humanitarian problems in Gaza, while not preventing Israel" from pursuing its aggression.

It is worth mentioning that early today, Biden asked for a "pause" in the aggression on Gaza, albeit only after a request from a Rabbi in his audience at a Minnesota event on Thursday.

The rabbi, who subsequently revealed her identity as Jessica Rosenberg, yelled, "Mr. President, I need you to call for a ceasefire if you care about Jewish people as a rabbi."

Biden expressed, “I think we need a pause. A pause means giv[ing] time to get the prisoners out," turning a blind eye to the thousands of Palestinians killed so far in the Israeli aggression, the tens of thousands injured, the millions displaced, and the entire Strip that is under a complete blockade for almost a month now. This comes amid concerns that he could lose democratic votes during the upcoming presidential race.

Good cop, bad cop

The newspaper noted that US officials were concerned about the delivery of humanitarian aid trucks, which were entering Gaza through the Rafah border crossing.

However, the alleged concern is that aid trucks must "safely" reach the Strip, without being hit by Israeli airstrikes, reported the NYT. On that note, White House officials said Netanyahu and other Israeli officials remained "opposed to a broad cease-fire but appeared receptive to the idea of further pauses in the fighting for those purposes."

It is worth noting that earlier this month, after the US claimed its support for a "humanitarian pause" in Gaza, it voted a hypocritical no at the UNGA session on October 27. After the White House Spokesperson, John Kirby, stated that the United States supports a humanitarian pause in Gaza to get humanitarian aid to civilians, the United States voted against a relevant resolution at the Security Council.

Amid US allegations about "humanitarian pause" and "securing aid trucks into Gaza," it failed to condemn any of the Israeli attacks on the hospitals, schools, and homes in Gaza. This itself highlights the US hypocrisy and false humanitarian claims.