By Janet Ekstract ISTANBUL- Three things happened on Sunday that should serve as Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu’s wake-up call. While the health ministry in Gaza reported increasing numbers of children dying of dehydration and malnutrition – U.S. Vice-President Kamala Harris called for an “immediate ceasefire,” and Israeli war minister Benny Gantz flew into Washington D.C. for talks with Harris– without Netanyahu’s knowledge, according to media reports. Harris who was in Selma, Alabama at a commemoration event, called for an “immediate ceasefire” and called out Israel for not doing enough to prevent a “humanitarian catastrophe.” As Harris told the crowd in Alabama: “People in Gaza are starving. The conditions are inhumane and our common humanity compels us to act.” She added: “The Israeli government must do more to significantly increase the flow of aid. No excuses.” Harris said that Israel must open new border crossings, stop imposing “unnecessary restrictions” on aid delivery, protect humanitarian personnel and convoys from becoming targets.
Meanwhile, on Sunday, the Palestinian health ministry reported increasing numbers of children in Gaza dying due to dehydration and malnutrition. Reporters on the ground in Gaza describe extremely dire, desperate and horrific conditions with Israeli forces finally admitting they fired on Palestinian civilians desperately waiting for an aid convoy. The civilians were gathering around a truck bringing in aid supplies when eyewitnesses said Israeli soldiers began firing into the crowd, claiming they felt threatened by the swarming, unarmed mass of civilians. Drone footage showed the chaotic moments as gunfire erupted, killing at least 118 civilians in what has been labeled by many, as a “massacre.” Initially, Israel refused to admit its soldiers were responsible for firing on the crowd but drone footage told a different story.
The facts staring everyone in the face are plain and simple: Netanyahu listens to no one except his far-right ministers who have threatened his government if he makes a ceasefire deal. These are the same ministers who already think they will parcel out land to Jewish settlers on a now barren Gaza Strip. And that’s precisely the point that most analysts have pointed out – Netanyahu fears being unseated from his post as prime minister, especially with ongoing protests calling for his ouster. At the same time, U.S. President Joe Biden fears losing the Jewish vote this November which explains the U.S. walking on eggshells where Israel is concerned. But the Arab-American community who supported Biden in the last election have made it clear they’re having second thoughts after his lack of outreach to their community and despite the desperation in Gaza, they point out that Biden is still supplying Israel with weapons. International organizations and a number of political analysts and experts on the Middle East have pointed out the U.S. role in allowing Israel to get away with egregious actions in Gaza that go against international law. As one political analyst on Sunday’s Meet The Press said, actions that the Biden administration has taken with Israel make “Biden seem weak.”
In the meantime, the hostages are no closer to being freed, the Muslim holy month of Ramadan is upon us with still no deal in sight. On Monday, Harris will meet with Israeli war cabinet member and former defense minister Benny Gantz, at the White House. A White House official told the press, the two are expected to discuss how to reduce Palestinian civilian casualties, securing a temporary ceasefire, a hostage release plan and increasing aid to Gaza. Harris is also expected to share her concerns about the 1.5 million people in Rafah since Israel has threatened a major incursion there without making provisions for such a large population. The White House official also said that Harris and Gantz will discuss what happens after the war, to revitalize Gaza under the Palestinian Authority. Meanwhile, there are those who were speculating on Gantz’s trip to the U.S., claiming he made it without Netanyahu’s knowledge. But in a formal statement from Gantz it read: “Minister Gantz personally updated the prime minister on his own initiative, on Friday of his intention to travel, in order to coordinate the messages to be transmitted in the meetings.” Whatever happens now might depend on a ‘miracle’ since as many Israelis have pointed out – Netanyahu’s goal is to save himself not the hostages. It was Biden who said in December, that Israel was losing support over its “indiscriminate” bombing of Gaza and that Netanyahu needed to make a shift. As U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin speaking at a National Defense Forum in December also said: “I have personally pushed Israeli leaders to avoid civilian casualties and to shun irresponsible rhetoric, and to prevent violence by settlers in the West Bank.”
The question now remains: Is Netanyahu stuck between a rock and a hard place just long enough that he’d be willing to budge to get a hostage deal done, finally? It’s a precarious answer because the harder he tries to hold onto power, the more it’s likely to slip out from under him. With the U.S. patience at its tipping point and the Israeli population repeatedly calling for his resignation, Netanyahu really doesn’t have much of a choice where a ceasefire is concerned. Basically, he’s damned if he does and damned if he doesn’t.
