As the War in Gaza against Hamas continues, resolutions and political speeches in North America and the UK indicate increasing dissatisfaction with how Prime Minister Netanyahu is directing the IDF activities.
A Reuters report in The Jerusalem Post outlines the resolution passed in the Canadian Parliament on March 18, 2024 that calls on the international community to work toward a two-state solution to resolve the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians, in line with government policy.
Canada's parliament passed a non-binding motion late Monday calling on the international community to work toward a two-state solution to resolve the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians, in line with government policy.
The original motion was drawn up by the minority left-leaning New Democrats (NDP), who are helping keep Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's Liberal Party in power and are unhappy with what they see as his failure to do enough to protect civilians in Gaza.
The amended motion, which also adopted stronger language against the Palestinian militant group Hamas, passed by 204 votes to 117 after most of the Liberal cabinet - including Ya’ara Saks, who is Jewish - and caucus voted in favor.
It was opposed by some Liberal members of parliament -- Anthony Housefather, Ben Carr and Marco Mendicino, a former federal minister. (Canada's Parliament Passes Vote After Language on Palestinian Statehood Dropped, n.d.)
The Guardian reports that in recent weeks, there have been signs of a shift in messaging from the Biden administration.
The US, UK and Israel, unlike nearly 140 other UN member states, have not formally recognized Palestine. The US has long stressed that Palestinian statehood should be achieved through direct negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian Authority, which oversees parts of the Israeli-occupied West Bank, while Hamas controls Gaza. Earlier this month, however, the state department spokesperson, Matthew Miller, told reporters that the US was “actively pursuing the establishment of an independent Palestinian state” after the war in Gaza.
His remarks came amid reports that the US secretary of state, Antony Blinken, has asked the state department to conduct a review and present policy options on possible future recognition of a Palestinian state. (Chao, 2024)
Britain’s foreign secretary, David Cameron, has floated the idea of the UK recognizing a Palestinian state in combination with allies as a means to make the process of negotiating a two-state solution “irreversible”. “It could be something that we consider as this process, as this advance to a solution, becomes more real,” Cameron said during a visit last week to Lebanon.
Netanyahu has dismissed US calls for a path to a Palestinian state, insisting that he would not “compromise on full Israeli security control over all territory west of the Jordan River ''. The Israeli prime minister, who has boasted that he was instrumental in preventing Palestinian statehood, is trying to cling to power and elude the threat of prison by appeasing the far-right members of his coalition government. (Chao, 2024)
The Economist notes that Chuck Schumer, the majority leader of the US Senate and America’s highest-ranking Jewish official, is fond of noting that his surname derives from the Hebrew word shomer, or guardian. His remarks on the Senate floor about Binyamin Netanyahu were anything but ordinary. Mr Biden initially kept his criticism of how Israel has conducted this war private. Recently he has been openly critical while refusing to use his leverage, such as by withholding military support, or backing UN resolutions condemning Israel.
“Prime Minister Netanyahu has lost his way by allowing his political survival to take precedence over the best interests of Israel,” Mr Schumer said during a 44-minute speech. “I believe a new election is the only way to allow for a healthy and open decision-making process about the future of Israel.” (Chuck Schumer and Joe Biden Pile Pressure on Binyamin Netanyahu, n.d.)
Mr Biden initially kept his criticism of how Israel has conducted this war private. Recently he has been openly critical while refusing to use his leverage, such as by withholding military support, or backing UN resolutions condemning Israel.
Mr Schumer’s comments have given Mr Biden cover to take a tougher stance. But Aaron David Miller, of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, another think-tank (and a veteran negotiator of would-be Middle East peace deals), does not expect major changes to Mr Biden’s “passive-aggressive” approach just yet. The only way for Mr Biden to resolve the political, moral and policy conundrums that Israel’s assault on Gaza has produced, Mr Miller reckons, is for the images coming out of Gaza to change. Mr Biden may get tougher, “but I don’t see it happening now, particularly given the fact that for the first time in weeks, there may be some openings on the ground” as Israel permits more humanitarian assistance and sends negotiators to Qatar.
However, if an Israeli assault on Rafah, where some 1.4m Palestinian civilians are sheltering, produces massive casualties, Mr Biden’s tone could become much more critical, much faster. “Whatever happens,” adds Mr Indyk, “pressure is now an overt part of the us-Israel relationship.” (Chuck Schumer and Joe Biden Pile Pressure on Binyamin Netanyahu, n.d.)
Jacob Magid Follow reports in The Times of Israel that after long indicating the US could back an offensive if IDF ensures civilians’ safety, President Biden says he wants a more targeted approach. The White House says Prime Minister Netanyahu agreed to send a team to Washington to discuss this change.
“A major ground operation there would be a mistake. It would lead to more innocent civilian deaths, worsen the already dire humanitarian crisis, deepen the anarchy in Gaza and further isolate Israel internationally,” US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said, offering a readout on the 45-minute call in his opening remarks at a White House press briefing. (Follow, n.d.)
US officials speaking on condition of anonymity to The Times of Israel in recent weeks increasingly expressed their skepticism that such a large-scale evacuation would be possible.
“The key goals Israel wants to achieve in Rafah can be done by other means,” Sullivan asserted, revealing that Biden asked Netanyahu during the call to send an interagency team to Washington “to lay out an alternative approach that would target key Hamas elements in Rafah and secure the Egypt-Gaza border without a major ground invasion.” Sullivan said Netanyahu agreed to the president’s request to send a delegation. (Follow, n.d.)
The defiance of Prime Minister Netanyahu to align prosecution of the war in Gaza with direction proposed by Israel’s traditional allies risks greater death and destruction that violates international humanitarian law particularity in the concepts of discrimination and proportionality.
References
Canada's parliament passes vote after language on Palestinian statehood dropped. (n.d.). The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved March 19, 2024, from https://www.jpost.com/breaking-news/article-792697
Chao, L. (2024, February 10). Two-state solution: Biden's fresh push to solve the Israel-Gaza conflict. The Guardian. Retrieved March 19, 2024, from https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/feb/10/us-biden-two-state-solution-explained-israel-palestine
Chuck Schumer and Joe Biden pile pressure on Binyamin Netanyahu. (n.d.). The Economist. Retrieved March 19, 2024, from https://www.economist.com/united-states/2024/03/16/chuck-schumer-and-joe-biden-pile-pressure-on-binyamin-netanyahu
Follow, J. (n.d.). Times of Israel. : ISRAEL INTRUDES MORE IN US POLITICS THAN VICE VERSA. Retrieved March 19, 2024, from https://www.timesofisrael.com/biden-rules-out-support-for-major-rafah-op-in-first-call-with-pm-in-over-a-month/
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