The Israeli newspaper “Yedioth Ahronoth” reported, citing American officials, that US Secretary of State Antony Blinken believes that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is seeking a confrontation with the United States over the Palestinian issue. American intelligence sources confirmed that Israel has weakened the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) but has not eliminated it.
The newspaper mentioned that the US Secretary of State was shocked by the Israeli Prime Minister involving political considerations in the hostage issue, indicating that Blinken is committed to the release of Israeli captives in Gaza more than Netanyahu.
Blinken met Netanyahu and officials in the Israeli war government during his visit to Tel Aviv yesterday, Thursday, to discuss ways to secure the release of captives in Gaza following Netanyahu’s statements rejecting some demands of Hamas.
Blinken stated at the beginning of the meeting with ministers in the Israeli war government that the discussions would focus on “hostages and the strong desire of each of us to see them return to their families, and on the work being done to achieve this goal.”
Netanyahu rejected Hamas’s demands to cease fire as part of a ceasefire agreement yesterday, Thursday, pledging to expand military operations to include Rafah (south), where more than a million Palestinians have fled.
Response to the Aggression on Rafah
The White House announced -Thursday- that the US administration will not support any Israeli plans for major military operations in Rafah, and negotiations continue on releasing captives and reaching a ceasefire agreement in Gaza.
Kirby affirmed that “any major military operation in Rafah at this time – and under these circumstances, with more than a million, perhaps more than 1.5 million Palestinians seeking refuge and shelter in Rafah without due regard for their safety – would be a disaster and we will not endorse it.”
He indicated that Blinken expressed US concerns about such operations.
President Joe Biden described the Israeli response in Gaza as exceeding the limit in unprecedented statements criticizing the Israeli war on the sector, affirming that his administration is working towards a permanent cessation of fighting.
Biden stated in a surprise address at the White House the night before last Wednesday that he pressured Netanyahu strongly to deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza where “many innocent people, women, and children are starving and urgently need it,” he said.
Estimations
Despite Netanyahu’s insistence on continuing the war until eliminating Hamas, it does not seem that the ongoing Israeli aggression for 4 months in Gaza will enable achieving the goal he proclaimed since the outbreak of the war. The American newspaper “New York Times” quoted US officials as saying that US intelligence officials confirmed that while Israel weakened Hamas, it did not come close to eliminating it.
The newspaper mentioned that the officials refrained from providing specific estimates regarding the number of “Hamas fighters killed,” arguing that these estimates are inaccurate and meaningless, according to them.
They also quoted American officials saying that the United States learned through wars that counting the casualties of insurgents or during counterterrorism operations is a stupid process, and there are doubts that the goal of destroying Hamas is realistic, and that weakening the fighting force of the movement may be a more achievable goal.
