There are a number of events leading up to the offensive
The U.S. War in the War of the 1967 Suez Crisis: The Failure of Israel’s Security and Security Effort
President Dwight Eisenhower pressured Israel with the threat of sanctions into withdrawing from the Sinai in 1957 in the midst of the Suez Crisis. Reagan delayed the delivery of fighter jets to Israel because of the violence in the Middle East. The President held up loan guarantees so that the cessation of settlement activity in the occupied territories could be achieved.
The U.S.-Israel relationship has been close through both Democratic and Republican administrations. But there have been other moments of deep tension since the founding in which U.S. leaders have threatened to hold up aid in attempt to sway Israeli leadership.
The U.S. dropped the 2,000-pound bomb sparingly in its long war against the Islamic State militant group. The bomb has been used by Israel a lot in the Gaza war. Experts say the use of the weapon, in part, has helped drive the enormous Palestinian casualty count that the Hamas-run health ministry puts at more than 34,000 dead, though it doesn’t distinguish between militants and civilians.
The State Department is looking at the transfer of JDM kits, which place guidance onto bombs, but they didn’t discuss imminent shipments.
The national security bill, which was passed last month, included funding for several countries. There was more than $11 billion in military aid for Israel in the package.
Regardless of the cease-fire, Israel vowed to launch a military operation in Rafah. Almost half of Gaza’s population had sought shelter prior to the offensive in Rafah.
The White House is concerned about what’s happening in the city but the administration insists that the operations did not violate Biden’s warnings.
Israel sent phone messages and dropped leaflets over southern parts of Rafah. Families are packing their belongings and fleeing the area. Hours later, Hamas agrees to a modified cease-fire deal, but Israel’s war cabinet says it falls short of its demands.
U.S. Defense Secretary Mario Biden and the Security Delegation during the War on Balaamean Liberation: Israel’s Impossibility of Attacking Gaza
Jean-Pierre said, “Two things could be true.” When asked about Biden’s support for Israel, the press secretary refused to square the arms holdup.
U.S. officials had declined for days to comment on the halted transfer, word of which came as Biden on Tuesday described U.S. support for Israel as “ironclad, even when we disagree.”
WASHINGTON — The U.S. paused a shipment of bombs to Israel last week over concerns that Israel was approaching a decision on launching a full-scale assault on the southern Gaza city of Rafah against the wishes of the U.S., a senior administration official said Tuesday.
A senior U.S. official said the U.S. had paused a shipment of more than 3,000 bombs to Israel last week because of concerns they could be used on Rafah. The paused shipment included 1,800 2,000-pound bombs and 1,700 500-pound bombs.
Many Palestinians in Gaza say that paying thousands of dollars for Egyptian visas to enter Egypt is an extortion and bribe. The U.N. describes Gaza as “uninhabitable” and warns of the risk of famine.
The first aid trucks enter Gaza since the start of the war through the Rafah crossing after President Biden visits Israel and speaks with Egypt’s president. The trucks are parked on Egypt’s side of the border.
U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin warns in a speech that the war in Gaza can only be won by protecting civilians, saying “the center of gravity is the civilian population.” He says otherwise Israel risks replacing “a tactical victory with a strategic defeat.”
U.N. humanitarian chief Martin Griffiths tells WBUR’s “Here and Now” there is “no place of safety for people to shelter” in Gaza. He called it a point of irreversible tragedy and said that diplomacy hasn’t worked. If people don’t feel safe, what are they going to do? If they were to attempt to break out of Egypt, I dread to think of the scenes that will then follow, because Egyptians would not want to accept more Palestinians.
U.N. Secretary General António Guterres invokes Article 99 for the first time in his tenure, prompting a cease-fire vote at the Security Council. He warns of mass displacement in neighboring countries and the threat of forced displacement into Egypt. 13 nations voted in favor of the resolution while the U.K. abstained, but there was only one veto of the resolution.
At a Tel Aviv press conference, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is asked about the Philadelphi Corridor, a stretch of territory in Gaza that borders Egypt. He says: “The Philadelphi Corridor must be in our hands and must be closed. Any other arrangement will not guarantee the demilitarization that we want and must guarantee.”
After Netanyahu met with the U.S Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Netanyahu said that Israel will carry out an operation in Rafah with the support of the US.
Israel’s military frees two hostages from Rafah in a raid that kills at least 70 Palestinians, including scores of children, according to media reports quoting Gaza’s health ministry.
According to a report by Walla, Israeli military chief of staff Aviv Kochavi and Shin Bet director Ronen Bar meet with Egyptian officials and assured them that they will coordinate the operation in Rafah. Egypt and Israel are in close touch with each other. Egypt warns against an attack on Rafah.
The Palestinians in Gaza: Questioning the Status of a High-Scale Operation in the Light of the UN Security Council Report on Gaza
According to the health ministry in Gaza, the death toll there surpasses 30,000. The ministry says most of those killed are women and children, and says its estimate of those killed by Israeli attacks is an undercount as thousands of people remain missing or trapped under the rubble. The death toll does not give a breakdown of militants killed.
The European Union’s top diplomat, Josep Borrell, warns that an operation in Rafah would lead to a humanitarian catastrophe. In April and May, he wants to keep Rafah out of harms way.
The White House is in discussion with Israel’s government on alternative methods to remove Hamas from Gaza, according to a National Security Council spokesman.
Is Israel aware of Egypt’s warnings against entering the Sinai? asks the chair of Egypt’s State Information Service. Will it choose this option at the expense of peace that has lasted for 45 years, and put Egypt in a position where Israel does not really know how it will react?”
Foreign ministers from the Group of 7 countries, led by the U.S., say they oppose a full-scale Israeli military operation in Rafah, warning of catastrophic consequences for the civilian population there. The group wants a plan to protect civilians.
The Israeli military mobilizes two brigades for duty in Gaza, a move that Israeli news organizations report frees up troops in central Gaza for a Rafah assault.
The Hamas delegation in Cairo had questions and concerns over the parameters of the possible cease-fire that could free Israeli hostages held in Gaza and Palestinian prisoners held in Israel. It wants Israel to withdraw troops from Gaza and an end to the war.
The U.S. War on a Rafah Warp: Biden, the White House, and the Phenomenology
President Biden says that he has threatened to withhold some weapons to Israel if it proceeds with a major ground invasion of Rafah, saying civilians have died as a result of the use of certain bombs.
A senior administration official confirmed that pause to NPR earlier on Wednesday, speaking on condition of anonymity. White House spokesman were not willing to speak on Monday and Tuesday about the pause.
The 2,000-pound bombs are of particular concern to the U.S. administration given the impact they could have in dense urban settings, the official said.
The White House has warned Israel against a ground operation in Rafah and pushed for a truce in Gaza to allow for the release of hostages and a surge in humanitarian aid.
