At a fundraiser earlier this year, President Joe Biden restated what was then his position on Israel.
“I’m a Zionist,” Biden said, reiterating his views that Hamas must be destroyed and that Israel must be protected, according to a supporter,” NBC News reported.
That made sense as Hamas has been a U.S.-designated terror organization since 1997. But now that Israel is moving into the Hamas stronghold of Rafah to secure its border and defend its people, the president has a different view: “If they go into Rafah, I’m not supplying weapons.” (RELATED: RICHARD MINITER: Biden Twiddles His Thumbs While Iran Closes In On Critical Shipping Lane)
The shift is not rhetorical. The administration has moved from supporting Israel’s determination to destroy Hamas to restricting military cooperation with its long-term partner in the region and, in fact, ensuring that Hamas lives to rise again.
The Washington Post reported over the weekend that the administration is offering Israel intelligence information that it says would “help the Israeli military pinpoint the location of Hamas leaders and find the group’s hidden tunnels” — if Israel agrees to limit the incursion into Rafah. The Post characterizes that information as “valuable.” It could be characterized as blackmail.
Israel is unlikely to be moved, and Commander Jennifer Dyer, a retired career Naval Intelligence officer, explained why:
“I don’t believe the Biden administration actually has intel Israel doesn’t about Hamas and Gaza… it’s so unlikely we have better intel than Israel on that target set that I don’t hesitate to say it’s an improbable claim… Given all the other moves the Biden administration has made, in situations from Afghanistan to Ukraine to Niger, and including its handling of Israel-Gaza to date, there is no reason to assume the Biden team is NOT running this as an info op.”
And, speaking of info ops, there was a rather definitive statement by Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Face The Nation on May 12. While Israel may have some military success in Rafah, Blinken said, it will be one that “is not durable, one that’s not sustainable. And they will be left holding the bag on an enduring insurgency because a lot of armed Hamas will be left no matter what they do in Rafah… We want to make sure it’s demilitarized.”
“Demilitarized” is a long way from “defeated,” particularly as Blinken has announced that the Palestinian Authority (PA) is the U.S. choice for governing Gaza and the PA has announced that Hamas can be part of a future coalition.
Not right away, of course. PA Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki said: “Later, when the situation is right, we could contemplate that option. But what comes first is how to salvage the situation.”
“That’s why I think Hamas should understand this,” he said, “and I do believe that they are in support of the idea to establish, today, a technocratic government.” And later…?
Either Blinken and al-Maliki are in cahoots to undermine the president, or the ground has shifted again. In either case, Blinken is wrong and ahistorical.
The U.S. and the Allies did not accept that Nazism was “durable” or “sustainable,” or that it should be “demilitarized.” The Allies accepted Germany’s unconditional surrender and occupied Berlin.
Similarly, the Allies defeated Imperial Japan, rewrote its Constitution, changed its educational system, and made the Emperor a human rather than a god. Modern, democratic countries emerged.
Ronald Reagan believed the Soviet Union and communist ideology could be defeated.
While Israel is likely to pursue its war aims in Gaza, there are broad repercussions to American perfidy. One was in the UN General Assembly, which voted to accept “Palestine” as a full member of the body — rather than a non-State observer. The “international community” sees no downside now in slapping Jews.
- In favor: 149, including all the nasties, plus China and Russia (OK, that’s redundant). But the big bullies were concerned that choosing to elevate the territory called “Palestine” to statehood would produce a similar result for Taiwan and Kosovo, which are claimed by Beijing and Moscow. They were appeased by a promise from the mob that this vote was about Israel and would have no future ramifications.
- Opposed: 9.
- Abstentions: 25, comprised of weenie countries that think an abstention will be recognized by Israel as a friendly vote and, at the same time, recognized by Israel’s enemies as a friendly vote.
The vote does not make “Palestine” a country. The UN Security Council is needed for that–and the U.S. has said it would veto that–but it does carry rights and privileges, including financial ones. The U.S. is the largest contributor to the UN, but under U.S. law, Washington is required to cut off funds to all UN agencies that give “Palestine” state membership status.
Biden has said nothing about it, mixing even his UN messages.
If there is a positive, shining star in this mess, it resides in the spirit of the people of Israel. Eden Golan captured fifth place in the Eurovision Song Contest — receiving an extraordinary number of votes from the international viewing public, including from Ireland, where the government is notably hostile to Israel. Her calm, beautiful voice rose above the boos, screams and pro-Hamas chants inside the venue and threats on the streets of the nasty, vile city of Malmo, Sweden.
If you haven’t seen her, watch this and know that Am Yisrael Chai–the people of Israel live. Despite the mixed messages from the United States.
Shoshana Bryen is Senior Director of the Jewish Policy Center and Editor of inFocus Quarterly magazine.
The views and opinions expressed in this commentary are those of the author and do not reflect the official position of the Daily Caller News Foundation.
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