Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is deliberately ignoring advice from US President Joe Biden and is seeking to create a confrontation with him regarding the war in Gaza, the former Israeli Consul General in New York, Alon Pinkas, said in an article published by the Israeli newspaper Haaretz.
Pinkas argued that Netanyahu is ignoring US advice, defying US requests, and bragging that “he stood up to America” so he can blame President Biden for “holding him back” and denying Israel the opportunity to eradicate Hamas.
According to Pinkas, Netanyahu is seeking a confrontation for purely political reasons. To remain in power, he is promoting a “fabricated narrative that ignores his culpability and responsibility for October 7.” Netanyahu is focusing on the war so he can claim he was “on the precipice of a major victory until Biden prevented him from completing the mission.”
Pinkas stated that after two months of war, it is now clear that Netanyahu’s policy and Biden’s policy are incompatible.
US officials have publicly called on Israel to kill fewer Palestinians during its military operations in Gaza, which have so far killed some 16,000 Palestinians, the majority of women and children. Thousands more are still unaccounted for under the rubble of destroyed homes and apartment buildings.
US officials continue to provide thousands of artillery shells and bombs for Israel’s use, but some speculate their patience with Israel is wearing thin as Israel has continued its brutal bombing campaign.
On Saturday, speaking in Dubai, US Vice President Kamala Harris articulated US goals: “no changes to Gazan territory and borders; no forcible displacement of Palestinians; no Israeli reoccupation of the Strip; no besiegement of Palestinians in Gaza; no use of Gaza as a platform for terrorism; strengthening the Palestinian Authority so in due time it can extend its governance to Gaza and assume security responsibility.”
“Frankly,” Harris said, “the scale of civilian suffering, and the images and videos coming from Gaza, are devastating. … We want to see a unified Gaza and West Bank under the Palestinian Authority (PA).”
In contrast, Netanyahu openly said that Israel intends to create a “buffer zone” inside Gaza; that Israel will continue the military operation in southern Gaza until Hamas is “toppled”; that the PA will have no governing responsibilities in Gaza, and significantly cut the amount of humanitarian aid allowed into Gaza, despite a prior pledge.
Though Biden shares the goal of toppling Hamas, Netanyahu’s policy is hurting Biden’s chances for reelection, Pinkas argues.
Many members of Biden’s Democratic party are beginning to view BIden as complicit in Israel’s targeting of Palestinian civilians.
Pinkas therefore predicts that President Biden and other US officials will soon reign in Netanyahu, explaining that, “But as the experience and history of his predecessors shows, when an American president confronts an ally, Israel included, and explains it in terms of defending U.S. interests, the American public supports him. Biden will not lose one vote or one dollar in campaign contributions if he calls Netanyahu out.”
