US says Israel’s use of US arms likely violated international law, but evidence is incomplete
US says Israel’s use of US arms likely violated international law, but evidence is incomplete
The Biden administration says Israel’s use of U.S-provided weapons in Gaza likely violated international humanitarian law.
Just so it doesn't get understated, there has literally never been a single change in US relations with Israel since 1948. This is the single biggest policy change the State department has ever made.
19What policy change are you referring to? I didn’t see any mentioned in the article. Looks like business as usual despite the clear evidence of genocide aided by US weaponry
11This is a public signal by the State department, which has influence backed by federal law. It's a warning that the bombs will dry up if any US arms are used in the aid of war crimes. Yes. Everyone knows that US arms have been used in Israeli war crimes. That's the point of the message, and will have enormous shifts in foreign policy by the entirety of NATO.
Edit: the direct answer to your question is that the US has never warned Israel like this. They have never threatened to end military aid.
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At first, I considered it one of those proverbial baby-splitting decisions, and thus a dumb move. The Israeli government and its partisans in the U.S. are going to flip out as if this is the worst betrayal ever, because it's their M.O. to flip out over anything slightly critical. It's also not going to satisfy the "Genocide Joe" faction.
After some reflection, I think (hope!) that this is a warning shot to get IDF to take protecting civilians seriously. And because they won't (ethnic cleansing is the whole point of the operation), the Biden team better be ready to back it up with real consequences.
And the idiot Republicans have already jumped straight to impeachment talk, the New War Times is hyperventilating about antisemitism. They have no room to escalate, he's taken the big political hit. Now there's not so much further downside to bringing the hammer down on the Netanyahu regime.
2That won’t stop a huge amount of people from complaining that this “isn’t enough” and failing to appreciate what a monumental victory that this is.
Not satisfied that this doesn’t go far enough? Keep protesting! It works!
0Half assing a report saying that Israeli maybe used US weapons against civilians after 6 months of Israel blatantly murdering civilians with US weapons is definitely not enough lol.
Israel seems to be going ahead with their full assault on Rafah which means the ceasefire deal is probably down the gutter.
So it would be enough if Biden actually follows through with serious consequences for Israel. He stopped one shipment as a threat so far, so I'm patiently waiting to see how he reacts.
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This is the best summary I could come up with:
The administration’s findings on its close ally’s conduct of the war, a first-of-its-kind assessment that was compelled by President Joe Biden’s fellow Democrats in Congress, comes after seven months of airstrikes, ground fighting and aid restrictions that have claimed the lives of nearly 35,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children.
He has faced growing rancor at home and abroad over the soaring Palestinian death toll and the onset of famine, caused in large part by Israeli restrictions on the movement of food and aid into Gaza.
Tensions have been heightened further in recent weeks by Netanyahu’s pledge to expand the Israeli military’s offensive in the crowded southern city of Rafah, despite Biden’s adamant opposition.
The agreement also obligated them to tell Congress whether they deemed that Israel has acted to “arbitrarily to deny, restrict, or otherwise impede, directly or indirectly,” delivery of any U.S.-supported humanitarian aid into Gaza for starving civilians there.
At the time the White House agreed to the review, it was working to head off moves from Democratic lawmakers and independent Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont to start restricting shipments of weapons to Israel.
A report to the Biden administration by an unofficial, self-formed panel including military experts, academics and former State Department officials detailed Israeli strikes on aid convoys, journalists, hospitals, schools and refugee centers and other sites.
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