Occupied Jerusalem – The American administration and the pro-Israel European governments have intensified their pressures on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government in recent days to end the widespread fighting in the Gaza Strip within a few weeks.
The Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported in its Tuesday issue that these parties will press Netanyahu to replace the shelling and fighting with targeted raids and assassinations of leaders of the Islamic Resistance Movement, Hamas.
US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, who visited Israel on Monday, and White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, who preceded him with a visit last week, delivered clear messages on this matter to members of the Israeli security cabinet.
Netanyahu faces increasing American and Israeli pressure (Al Jazeera)
Support and Discussion
This comes while President Joe Biden's administration in Washington publicly continues to express its full support for Israel's goals in the war on Gaza, even though the National Security Council spokesman, John Kirby, said at the end of the week that the administration believes "this could continue for months."
However, Kirby clarified that the United States and Israel are discussing "the transition from high-intensity military operations to less intense and more precise military operations," as he described.
At the end of his meeting with Israeli Security Minister Yoav Gallant, Austin published a brief message, writing that they discussed the goals of the war, its stages, and the protection of civilians.
According to an Israeli source familiar with the details of the discussions, Austin clarified that the current phase of the war, in which large Israeli military forces operate deep in Gaza, causing severe damage to civilian infrastructure, must end.
The Israeli source added in a conversation with Haaretz that "Austin did not set a specific date, but the message was very clear."
Austin spoke with the Israelis about ways to end the current phase of the war (French)
Expertise and Debates
In a media briefing for journalists before Austin's landing at Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv, a US security official said that the experience gained by the US Defense Secretary in Afghanistan and Iraq, when he was a commander in the army, is at the heart of the discussions and relevant to the dilemmas discussed by Israel in light of the war on Gaza.
The American official explained that Austin could offer a valuable perspective on these questions and dilemmas, "and that's what he did." He added that "he spoke with the Israelis about ways to transition between different fighting stages."
Haaretz reported that the governments of Britain and Germany, among the most pro-Israel countries in the West, at the beginning of the week called for a "permanent ceasefire" in Gaza. Netanyahu's government has not officially responded to the British and German calls, according to the newspaper.
France had also called for a ceasefire earlier and was criticized by Israel for it.
The Biden administration remains almost alone in its public opposition to a ceasefire, which was also reflected in the recent voting at the United Nations Security Council on this issue.
Calls and Criticisms
The Israeli official who spoke to Haaretz estimated that the calls for a ceasefire from the European governments and the growing criticisms of Netanyahu in the US Senate and Congress are coordinated with the American administration.
According to him, "Biden is thinking about these matters, but he does not state them directly at this moment. Yet, he speaks to other people, and they make sure to convey the message."
This stance of the American administration comes at a time when Senator Chris Coons, a close associate of President Biden, attacked Netanyahu and described him as "a problematic partner" in an interview.
Over the years, Coons has received support from the pro-Israel lobby AIPAC and has rarely expressed severe criticism of Israel. However, he stated that Netanyahu "has done everything in his power over the years to harm Israel's vision of peace."
Last week, Congressman Steve Cohen, one of the prominent Jewish lawmakers in the Democratic Party, said that Biden "was fed up" with the war in Gaza.
Cohen warned that if Israel does not change its approach, "it will lose its last true friend in the world, President Biden."
Voices and Consequences
For the first time since the beginning of the Israeli war on Gaza, the newspaper says, even in the Republican Party, voices are demanding that Israel consider the consequences of its military operation in Gaza.
Senator Lindsey Graham, a prominent supporter of Israel, said in an interview with "NBC" last Sunday, that Israel must consider the impacts of the war in Gaza on its efforts to normalize relations with Saudi Arabia.
Graham clarified that "those who want to weaken Iran in the long term must not allow it to sabotage the Israeli-Saudi relations."
He added that Saudi Arabia and other countries could not move toward normalization with Israel if it continued its practices against the Palestinians.
Graham mentioned that after the events of October 7th last year, "there are two options, to continue the cycle of death or to use the disaster as an incentive for change."
He continued, "I believe the Arabs will demand some kind of two-state solution, and Israel will demand a security buffer zone. I do not know how it will end, but it is clear to me that if we do not succeed this time, it will take another generation before an agreement is reached."
