President Biden’s warning over the arms supply freeze has tightened the bind facing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, as he is increasingly caught between international calls for a ceasefire and demands from Israel’s right to move forward. launched a large-scale invasion of Rafah, in southern Gaza. .
Mr. Netanyahu, who has always emphasized U.S. objections that the invasion of Rafah was necessary, now finds the U.S.-Israel relationship at a crisis point that could affect how he proceeds with the next phase. following the war against Hamas.
With Biden threatening for the first time to seize more US weapons, including heavy bombs and artillery shells, if Israel carries out a major operation in Rafah, a city home to about a million Palestinians, Analysts say the Israeli military risks losing the support of its most important foreign arms supplier.
“The United States provides Israel with a steel dome — it’s not just military support; it is strategic and political; that is at the United Nations, international courts, etc.” said Amos Gilead, a former senior Israeli defense official who worked closely with American security officials for decades. “If we lose America to President Biden’s unbelievable friendship, it will not be forgiven.”
Mr. Netanyahu did not directly respond to Mr. Biden’s comments, but he posted a video on social media of a defiant speech he gave this week, in which he said “there is no pressure which” would “prevent Israel from defending itself”.
“If Israel is forced to stand alone, Israel will stand alone,” he said. clip.
Experts say that while Israel has enough weapons in its stockpiles to carry out a large-scale invasion of Rafah, US restrictions could force the Israeli military to cut back on the deployment of specific weapons. can.
“We may have to economize on the use of weapons and hit more targets without precision bombs,” said Yakov Nagel, a former national security adviser.
Avi Dadon, a former procurement director for the Israeli Defense Ministry, told Kan, Israel’s public broadcaster, that he “might be worried” if American weapons were withdrawn. But on the surface at least, key members of Netanyahu’s government say the war effort will not be affected.
“I turn to Israel’s enemies as well as our best friends and say: The State of Israel cannot be conquered,” Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said at a memorial service. citizens and “stand up to those who seek to destroy us.”
Bezalel Smotrich, the far-right finance minister, declared that Israel would achieve “complete victory” despite what he described as Mr. Biden’s “resistance and arms embargo.”
American-made weapons, including heavy bombs, have been essential to Israel’s war effort since the country was attacked by Hamas and other militant groups on October 7. But Mr. Biden is having to under growing domestic pressure to rein in the Israeli military after the death toll has increased in Gaza. Now it’s more than 34,000.
And in comments Wednesday during an interview with CNN, Mr. Biden admitted for the first time that US bombs had killed innocent civilians in the conflict.
American concerns have only increased since the Israeli military sent tanks and troops into the eastern part of Rafah on Monday night, taking over the main border crossing between Gaza and Egypt. Israeli forces have stopped moving into built-up areas of the city, but Mr. Netanyahu and others have signaled that such an operation is necessary to eliminate the Hamas battalions there.
On Tuesday, US officials said Mr. Biden seized 1,800 2,000-pound bombs and 1,700 500-pound bombs which he feared might fall into Rafah’s hands. The administration is considering whether to limit future transfers, including to sets of instructions for converting so-called silent bombs into precision-guided munitions, officials said.
In addition to bombs, Mr. Biden said the US would not provide artillery shells if Israel invaded population centers in Rafah.
Gilad Erdan, Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations, described the Biden administration’s decision as “very disappointing” and “disappointing.”
“We have a cruel enemy here,” he said. “Is this the time to place restrictions on Israel’s weapons?”
Nadav Eyal, a prominent columnist for a moderate Israeli newspaper, said Mr. Biden had essentially decided to declare an end to the war. Writing on social media platform X, he called it “the most serious clash between the US and Israeli governments since the first Lebanon war.”
During the conflict that began in 1982, the Reagan administration suspended the supply of artillery shells and other weapons to Israel.
“We have reached a boiling point,” Mr. Eyal said in a follow-up interview. “Issues that were once negotiated behind closed doors have now been exposed to the public in a very ugly way.”
However, some analysts have downplayed the crisis, saying it is not as bad as past rifts between the US and Israel. Mr. Nagel said the rift in relations over the 2016 Iran nuclear deal was “much worse”.
Amid the tense situation, Israel’s president, Isaac Herzog, thanked the United States for supporting Israel and appeared to lash out at Itamar Ben-Gvir, the national security minister, who posted on X, “Hamas ♥ Biden .”
“Even when there are disagreements and moments of frustration between friends and allies, there are still ways to clarify disputes,” Mr. Herzog said.
Myra Noveck Report contributions.
