Biden threatens to restrict arms sales to Israel

The US government has been warning Israel of a major attack on Rafah for weeks. Now that the Israeli military is advancing there, there are the first consequences – and Biden is openly threatening further consequences.

US President Joe Biden has openly threatened Israel with restricting arms deliveries in the event of a major attack on the city of Rafah in the Gaza Strip. If the Israeli military invades densely populated parts of the city for an offensive, this will have consequences for US arms deliveries, Biden said in an interview on CNN. His government will not provide the weapons for a large-scale invasion of Rafah. The US has already withheld a shipment of ammunition to the Israeli armed forces because of Israel’s previous actions in Rafah in the south of the Gaza Strip.

Israel’s Rafah operation

Israeli soldiers advanced into parts of the city of Rafah on Tuesday night. According to its own statements, the army also took control of the border crossing on the Palestinian side. According to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the operation in Rafah is aimed at freeing the remaining hostages from Hamas and destroying the Islamist organization.

The USA, as Israel’s most important ally, has repeatedly warned Israel’s government in recent days and weeks against a major ground offensive in Rafah because hundreds of thousands of civilians are seeking protection there. In March, Biden spoke of a “red line” that Israel should not cross. The federal government has also warned against such a step.

Now the US president argued that the Israeli military has not yet “advanced into the population centers – what they have done is right on the border.” When asked whether, in his opinion, the red line he had defined had not yet been exceeded, Biden said: “Not yet.” However, he emphasized that the US government had already stopped an arms shipment.

And he made it clear to Netanyahu and his war cabinet that they could not count on US support “if they actually go to these population centers.” It is “simply wrong” – and the USA cannot provide the weapons and artillery ammunition for it.

First consequence for Israel

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin had recently confirmed that the US had withheld an ammunition shipment to the Israeli armed forces because of Israel’s actions in Rafah. Austin told a congressional hearing on Wednesday that the US government had made it clear from the outset that Israel could not launch a major attack in Rafah without taking into account and protecting civilians in the area. While the US government is assessing the situation, the delivery of ammunition has been stopped for the time being. He didn’t give any details.

The White House was also very reserved and did not disclose any details. When asked about media reports that the withheld shipment was said to contain thousands of bombs, Biden’s spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre said she would not comment.

America’s role in the war

In the CNN interview, the US President was asked whether civilians in Gaza had been killed by the type of US bombs, the delivery of which is currently on hold. Biden said: “Civilians have been killed in Gaza as a result of these bombs and other methods they use to attack population centers.” Activists and demonstrators are likely to see this statement confirming their criticism that the US government and Biden personally are complicit in the suffering and deaths in the Gaza Strip through military support for Israel.

At the same time, Biden made it clear that the US government would continue to ensure that Israel had sufficient military equipment for its own defense, for example with the help of the Iron Dome missile defense system. The United States would stand up for Israel’s security, he promised.

Allies in a clinch

The United States is Israel’s most important protecting power and supports the country with billions of dollars every year, a significant portion of which goes toward missile defense and other military technology. Relations between the two countries are more tense than ever in view of Israel’s military action in the Gaza Strip – and in particular because of the high number of civilian war victims and the humanitarian catastrophe in the conflict area.

Biden had significantly tightened his choice of words towards the Israeli leadership in recent weeks and repeatedly called on Netanyahu to better protect civilians in Gaza and to allow more aid deliveries into the sealed-off coastal strip. In the CNN interview, he also complained that many people had forgotten what happened in Israel in October and triggered the conflict.

Terrorists from Hamas and other extremist groups carried out the worst massacre in the country’s history in Israel on October 7th, murdering around 1,200 people. 250 others were kidnapped. Israel responded with massive bombings and a ground offensive in the Gaza Strip. According to Palestinian figures, more than 34,000 people have been killed there since the war began. The number – which can hardly be verified independently – does not differentiate between fighters and civilians.