Gaza ruins
Tel Aviv/Washington/Geneva: Virtually ignoring desperate calls by human rights bodies for an immediate ceasefire and humanitarian access as the Gaza health sector reaches “breaking point”, the President of the United States, Joe Biden, is on his way to visit Israel on October 18, 2023, to reaffirm American solidarity with Israel and its “ironclad” commitment to its security.
“President Biden will again make clear, as he’s done unequivocally since Hamas’s slaughter of more than 1,400 people, including at least 30 Americans, that Israel has the right and indeed the duty to defend its people from Hamas and other terrorists and to prevent future attacks. The President will hear from Israel what it needs to defend its people as we continue to work with Congress to meet those needs,” US Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken, who is camping in Tel Aviv since yesterday, said.
Among the agenda of Biden’s visit are:
- to underscore America’s “crystal-clear message to any actor, state or non-state, trying to take advantage of this crisis to attack Israel: Don’t. To that end, he’s deployed two aircraft carrier groups and other military assets to the region.
- to coordinate closely with Israel to secure the release of hostages taken by Hamas – including men, women, small children, Holocaust survivors, and American citizens – as an indispensable humanitarian effort.
- to receive a comprehensive brief on Israel’s war aims and strategy.
Biden’s visit to Tel Aviv comes, as Blinken said, at a critical moment for Israel, for the region, and for the world. More so, when a United Nations Human Rights expert Tlaleng Mofokeng, the UN Special Rapporteur on the right to health, said that the latest escalation and display of aggression in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territory represented a “crushing moment of ongoing gross structural, systemic and sustained violence experienced by Palestinians every day since the occupation. “Steps to realising the right to self-determination of Palestinians is linked to their dignity and sovereignty,” Mofokeng said. “You cannot extinguish the human desire for freedom,” she said.
The World Health Organization has documented more than 111 attacks on health care services in the occupied Palestinian territory, including 48 attacks on the Gaza Strip which resulted in the death of at least 12 health workers.
“I call for an immediate ceasefire and for Member States to stop beating the drums of war,” Mofokeng said in Geneva today.
She claimed that Israel was preventing the entry of essential supplies into Gaza, including food, water, fuel, medicines, medical disposables and equipment. “The Gaza Strip is experiencing continuous bombardment and massive devastation,” she said. “The health sector in the enclave is at a breaking point,” she added.
Mofokeng called on the international community to intervene immediately to prevent the escalation of conflict and protect and respect the right to health of all, by demanding access through humanitarian corridors, protection of the healthcare infrastructure and health workers. “Palestinian families require urgent supplies of food, water, shelter, fuel, emergency health care, psychosocial support and psychological first aid,” the expert said.
Incidentally, Biden is expected to hear from Israel how it will conduct its operations in a way that minimizes civilian casualties and enables humanitarian assistance to flow to civilians in Gaza in a way that does not benefit Hamas.
Biden will then travel to Amman, Jordan, where he will meet with King Abdullah, Egyptian President Sisi, and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas. “He [Biden]will reiterate that Hamas does not stand for the Palestinian people’s right to dignity and self-determination and discuss the humanitarian needs of civilians in Gaza,” White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said in Washington.
Earlier, Blinken visited six countries in the region: Jordan, Bahrain, Qatar, United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt, to “hear how they’re seeing this crisis”.
He told journalists in Cairo yesterday, “And what’s very clear is this: There are two very different visions for the future and what the Middle East can and should be. There’s a vision that we very strongly espouse that has countries in the region normalizing their relations, integrating, working together in common purpose, and upholding and bringing forth the rights and aspirations of the Palestinian people. That’s one vision; it’s very clear. There’s another vision that Hamas has demonstrated in the most horrific way, and that’s a vision of death, of destruction, of nihilism, of terrorism. That’s a vision that does nothing to advance aspirations for Palestinians, that does nothing to help create better futures for people in the region, and does everything to bring total darkness to everyone that it’s able to affect.”
“What I’ve heard from virtually every partner was a determination, a shared view that we have to do everything possible to make sure this doesn’t spread to other places; a shared view to safeguard innocent lives; a shared view to get assistance to Palestinians in Gaza who need it, and we’re working very much on that,” he said in Cairo.
In Tel Aviv, Blinken said that to that end, today, “and at our request”, the United States and Israel agreed to develop a plan that will enable humanitarian aid from donor nations and multilateral organizations to reach civilians in Gaza – and them alone – including the possibility of creating areas to help keep civilians out of harm’s way.
In Cairo, Blinken had assured media persons that the Rafah crossing – the border between Egypt and Israel, would be reopened to transport material support for the people in Gaza.
While conceding that it was critical that aid began flowing into Gaza as soon as possible, Blinken, however, today said he shared Israel’s concern that Hamas may seize or destroy aid entering Gaza or otherwise prevent it from reaching the people who need it.
“If Hamas in any way blocks humanitarian assistance from reaching civilians, including by seizing the aid itself, we’ll be the first to condemn it and we will work to prevent it from happening again,” Blinken declared.
Earlier yesterday, Secretary Blinken separately met Israeli President Isaac Herzog as well as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to reiterate US support for Israel’s right to defend itself from Hamas’ terrorism. Secretary Blinken reaffirmed the US commitment to provide Israel with the assistance it needs to protect its citizens. The Secretary also discussed with Prime Minister Netanyahu the United States’ close coordination with the UN and regional partners to facilitate the provision of humanitarian aid to civilians. The Secretary also discussed our commitment to the safe and speedy release of those held hostage by Hamas.
– global bihari bureau
