Critics on the right, including within the Republican Party, say Biden is not doing enough to clearly support Israel. They say Biden is too reticent about Palestinian suffering and that, despite nearly six months of Israeli attacks, they place the blame squarely on Hamas, whose October 7 strike against Israel marked the deadliest day of the Jewish history since the Holocaust.
And some, particularly those who defend former President Donald Trump’s de facto alliance with right-wing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his far-right coalition, are unhappy with Biden’s symbolic gestures aimed at restoring balance in US-Israeli relations. These include his administration’s decision to impose sanctions on a handful of Israeli settlers involved in violence against Palestinians in the West Bank and the recent determination that Israeli settlements there were “incompatible with international law.” . a reversal of a Trump-era doctrine who controversially argued the opposite.
U.S. officials and their Arab counterparts are meeting to discuss the potential contours of a truce that could be negotiated between Israel and Hamas. Over the weekend, Vice President Harris called Hamas to adhere to the proposed conditions so that there is an “immediate” ceasefire. She also said there was “no excuse” for Israel not to do more to allow aid to starving and battered Gaza, where reports are mounting that babies are dying of malnutrition and disease .
This week in Washington, growing tensions between the White House and Netanyahu are coming to the fore again. Biden may have offered Israel a “bear hug” in support in the wake of October 7, but he is increasingly keeping the embattled Israeli prime minister at arm’s length. Instead, administration officials are meeting with Netanyahu’s centrist rival, Benny Gantz, who is also a member of the country’s war cabinet.
Gantz arrived in Washington for meetings Monday and Tuesday with administration officials, including Harris, as well as Democratic and Republican lawmakers. For the White House, Gantz represents a more reasonable and acceptable Israeli leader, who, unlike Netanyahu, is not dogged by corruption charges and has not spent the last decade interfere in Washington’s partisan politics. This is no small feat, as the Democratic establishment expects growing outrage over the ongoing war among its base.
“While Gantz will undoubtedly take a hawkish approach toward the Palestinians, he does not carry the tainted name and reputation of Netanyahu. » noted Ben Samuels in the Israeli newspaper Haaretz. “Democratic lawmakers are fully aware of the difficult position they find themselves in when trying to manage criticism of Israeli policies with the support of Israel as an ally. Gantz provides them with a self-correcting mechanism.”
Gantz’s trip would have taken place not sanctioned by the Prime Minister’s Office and led to howls of disapproval right-wing allies of Netanyahu. Far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich accused Gantz of being complicit in the Biden administration’s broader plan to revitalize the peace process between Palestinians and Israelis and work toward the creation of a long-sought Palestinian state.
“The US government is looking for places to drive a wedge between the Israelis, in order to advance its plans, with the help of Gantz,” Smotrich said. said Monday during a meeting in Jerusalem. “In this way, Gantz is working to advance his plans to establish a Palestinian state. »
Netanyahu has made no secrets of his opposition to both Palestinian statehood and Biden’s post-war vision. Many Israeli analysts suggest that the prime minister is tying his political survival to continuing the war and excluding any discussion of concessions to the Palestinians, let alone the creation of an independent Palestinian state, to appease the extreme Israeli right which supports its ruling coalition. .
While Gantz and other more centrist leaders are hardly advocates of Palestinian sovereignty and self-determination, administration officials believe they are more receptive to the postwar future than the House Blanche hopes to see: a gradual process by which a “reformed” Palestinian Authority takes control. of Gaza, with considerable support from wealthy Arab neighbors who, at the same time, will strive to improve ties with Israel and further integrate it into the region. The grand prize of normalization between Israel and Saudi Arabia is looming.
“The Biden approach gives Israel an alternative to an indefinite occupation of Gaza and hope to Palestinians who need an alternative to Hamas ideology and the perpetual conflict it causes. » observed Nimrod Novik from the Israeli Political Forum in an editorial. But he added that Biden and the United States must do more to “make Israelis understand the power of this promise… and refute Netanyahu’s distortions.”
Writing in the New Yorker, Bernard Avishai argued that Biden must put his thumb on the Israeli political scale and push back harder against Netanyahu and his cohorts, even if that means exerting influence in international settings like the United Nations where the White House has shielded Israel from censure.
“There are secular leaders in Israel positioned to support an alternative vision for Gaza and the region and, arguably, to bring down Netanyahu. » Avishai wrote. “But fear is gripping the public, and these leaders currently have no real position in the absence of a U.S. president detailing a plan, proving the support of Arab allies, and warning Israel of the dire consequences of defying it. »
