Gaza: Joe Biden threatens for first time not to supply weapons to Israel in case of major Rafah offensive

The red line has not yet been crossed, but Washington is on guard. For the first time since the conflict began, Joe Biden warned on Wednesday that he “will not supply” Israel with certain weapons, particularly “artillery shells”, in the event of a major offensive on Rafah, while the US has already decided to suspend bomb deliveries.

However, the American president estimated that the military operation that had already begun in this city in southern Gaza had not yet reached the stage of a major assault.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is threatening to launch a ground offensive on the city, where Israel says the last Hamas battalions are holed up but also home to 1.4 million Palestinians, most of whom have been displaced by the war. The project has been heavily criticized by Washington for weeks. But this is the first time an American president has struck such a strong tone in publicly setting the terms for American military support.

“If they enter Rafah, I will not supply them with weapons that have always been used (…) against cities,” Joe Biden said in an interview with CNN. “We will not supply used weapons and artillery shells for now,” the 81-year-old democrat said.

“They won’t get our support”

Faced with “concerns” about Rafah, Washington decided last week to halt delivery of a shipment of bombs to Israel consisting of “1,800 2,000-pound (907 kg) bombs and 1,700 500-pound (226 kg) bombs.” This was reported by a senior American official on condition of anonymity. When asked about this choice, Joe Biden replied that “these” American bombs killed civilians in the Gaza Strip. “This is bad,” he added.

However, the American president concluded that a major attack in Rafah had not yet occurred. Earlier this week, the Israeli army, whose main military support is the United States, deployed tanks there and took control of the border crossing with Egypt. But the operation does not affect “populated areas,” Joe Biden assured, suggesting that this is not a major offensive requiring a response on his part. For now, Israel “has not yet crossed the red line in Rafah,” he insisted.

But the United States is ready to respond if the situation changes. “I told this clearly to Bibi. (Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu) and in the War Cabinet they will not receive our support if they actually enter populated areas,” the American President further confirmed. “We are not distancing ourselves from Israeli security, we are distancing ourselves from Israel’s ability to wage war in these areas,” he said.

However, he noted that Washington will continue to “ensure that Israel is protected by the Iron Dome, its air defense shield, and will maintain “its ability to respond to attacks like those that have recently occurred in the Middle East.” »

“Difficult to hear”

Israel’s reaction was not long in coming: Israel’s ambassador to the UN on Thursday found the threat to suspend arms sales “difficult to hear and very disappointing from a president to whom we have been grateful since the start of the war.” “It is very clear that any pressure on Israel, any restrictions placed on it, even from close allies who are concerned about our interests, are interpreted by our enemies” and “give them hope,” Gilad Erdan told Israeli public radio.

Joe Biden has assumed the role of Israel’s leading supporter since the unprecedented Hamas attack on October 7, but his relationship with Benjamin Netanyahu has endured several episodes of high tension and could reach a breaking point over the Rafah issue. The military operations, as well as the closure of the main gate to aid convoys into the besieged Palestinian territory, are raising fears of a worsening humanitarian crisis there.

In the midst of campaigning for the November presidential election, the American president is also facing growing strong opposition within the United States over military support for Israel, especially on the campuses of several American universities, which has been marked for weeks by a pro-Palestinian mobilization movement.