Al Jazeera Net reporters
Washington- US President Joe Biden has ordered his military to build a temporary floating dock and bridge off the coast to free prisoners at the start of the holy month of Ramadan, amid dwindling hopes of a ceasefire between Israel and the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas). Gaza in the Mediterranean will open a new avenue for the delivery of humanitarian aid.
Biden's official decision came in last Thursday's State of the Union address, prompted by the rapid collapse of the humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip, with hundreds of thousands of innocent people nearing the brink of starvation.
His decision raised questions and surprise because Biden is committed to providing Israel with all the weapons and ammunition it needs to continue its occupation, in addition to refusing to call for a complete ceasefire.
cheating
In recent weeks, the Biden administration has resorted to airdrops of small amounts of food aid after Israel refused to bring the Gaza Strip through six land crossings that connect it to the outside world, including the Rafah crossing with Egypt. Israel.
Commentators Al Jazeera Net spoke to believe that what Biden is doing is nothing more than a new attempt at evasion in his quest to find balance in an unbalanced war in the Middle East. Biden reiterates that he is “America's first Zionist president” with his full and unconditional support for Israel. Moreover, these are all internal political election calculations, and Biden fears that another will lose the opportunity to stay in the White House. 4 years.
There is ample evidence that Biden is increasingly frustrated that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has ignored his pleas to do more to protect civilians in Gaza. To affect the course of the fight.
Aaron David Miller, an expert at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and a former US negotiator in Middle East peace talks, tweeted on the X site, “The Israeli government is still not ready to mobilize humanitarian aid. Gaza is the result of internal political calculations, they don't.” They care about the suffering of Palestinian citizens or the future of Gaza.
“You can't have a policy of giving aid and arms to Israel to bomb food trucks at the same time,” Biden said in an interview the day after his speech, according to Democratic Rep. Ro Khanna of California.
He added, “There is an inherent contradiction in that, and I think the administration needs to reconcile the genuine compassion and moral concern shown last night for the lives of Palestinian citizens, with real accountability to Netanyahu and the far-right government there.”
to crash
Pentagon spokesman Pat Ryder said there would be no U.S. forces in Gaza, but the U.S. military would help build the docks and bridge. He explained that the construction of the corridor will take about 60 days, but once it is done it will be able to provide about two million meals a day.
Khalid al-Jundi, director of the Palestine Program at the Middle East Institute in Washington, tweeted, “Within 60 days, thousands more will die of hunger and disease. The most logical and effective response would be to demand complete reliance on Israel. For US arms and support, stop blocking aid entry, and cross roads.” Open. “Six lands to Gaza immediately.”
For his part, international affairs expert Azal Raad pointed out that the introduction of any aid in Gaza is welcome because of the dire humanitarian situation where children are starving to death. However, the Biden administration has failed to acknowledge Israel's responsibility for the current crisis and, as Human Rights Watch and other experts have noted, it is using starvation as a weapon of war.
He told Al Jazeera Net that it was odd for the US to offer such risky aid, which is usually reserved as a last resort in dealing with hostile nations, not allies like Israel, which is another. It reflects the ability to get away with impunity. The Biden administration has taken no steps to take responsibility for its actions.
Commentators rejected the idea that Washington would propose a move to build a temporary water base without prior coordination with Israel.
Loss of confidence in youth
In an interview with Al Jazeera Net, Wolfgang Postztai, a former diplomat and international affairs expert, pointed out that it would have been very surprising if Biden had not made the statement before Netanyahu made the statement in his state of the nation address.
He indicated his hope that the Israelis would not dare spoil Biden's plans, but that they would insist on some form of security checks to prevent arms smuggling to Hamas.
In a statement to Al Jazeera Net, former US Assistant Secretary of State for Middle East Affairs David Mack, who worked at his country's embassy in Jerusalem, pointed to the significance of Biden's announcement and opined that the sea hole is still wide open. Only a small percentage of Gaza's population have effective means of delivering humanitarian aid compared to unhelpful airdrops.
He insisted that the Israelis would relinquish relatively little control as they fended off US and international criticism for their tough stance on Gaza's residents.
For his part, Rod has criticized the Biden administration's approval of security tests and inspections of Israel, reflecting his fears that the United States will provide questionable aid. This would slow down the delivery of aid, “which Israel has been doing for months with all the aid coming to Gaza.”
Various polls show that two-thirds of Americans want an immediate end to the fighting in Gaza, and the percentage among Democrats is over 80%.
Poste felt that the current polls on the US presidential elections are not very favorable for Biden, who needs more support, especially among young Americans, many of whom are harsh critics of his policy on Israel, and that this move is a step to win them back. .
Rod said that despite internal pressure on President Biden, these announcements and actions are merely public relations moves, as the administration continues to provide Israel with money and weapons without stopping.
