US President Joe Biden threatens to cut off aid to Israel if they continue with the Rafah Offensive

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On Thursday, May 9, 2024, US President Joe Biden threatened to cut off the supply of American weapons to Israel, should they continue with their Rafah Offensive.

Israel has repeatedly stated their intention to enter Rafah, eliminate Hamas, and rescue the remaining hostages. Many humanitarian concerns have been expressed about a potential invasion. After an attack on a humanitarian checkpoint by Hamas, and after failed negotiations for seven day long ceasefire with the release of 40 hostages, Israel began to enter Rafah on May 6.

In response to this, and amid both domestic and international pressure, on May 9, 2024, President Joe Biden of the United States of America, threatened to cut of further offensive aid to Israel. Specifically, Biden declared that he would no longer be sending bombs and artillery shells if the liberation of Rafah continued.

While Biden declared that "We’re not walking away from Israel’s security. We’re walking away from Israel’s ability to wage war in those areas," most Israelis, Jews, Republicans, some Democrats, and many other people saw it as a betrayal of Israel. They viewed it as completely going back on the earlier statement by Biden that the United States' commitment to Israel was "ironclad." Former Republican president Donald Trump in particular declared it "disgraceful," also stating that "Any Jewish person that votes for Democrats hates their religion." Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared that "If we have to stand alone, we will stand alone," and that if Israel had to, it would "fight tooth and nail."

Israel stated that they could not defeat Hamas without invading Rafah, and as such would be at risk of a repeat of October 7 (something Hamas has repeatedly declared their intention to do). Tally Gotliv, a member of the Israeli Knesset, stated that if United States removed their supply of precision missiles, they would be forced to use imprecise ones, that could "flatten buildings."

This occurred amidst massive pro-Hamas backlash to Israel during the Israel-Hamas conflict, and specifically during the recent escalation. This escalation occurred following the October 7 massacre which killed 1,139 Israelis, including 373 members of the security forces, 695 civilians (including 36 children), and 71 foreigners. In addition, nearly 250 Isrealis were taken hostage. During the attack, nearly 2,500 Hamas gunmen crossed the border, as well as nearly 6,000 rockets were fired. The attack also had numerous instances of sexual assault. In response, Israel declared war on Hamas and mobilized 350,000 reservists.

During the war, Israel quickly liberated the Northern and Central portions of Gaza from Hamas, although it only managed to recover five hostages (one rescued, four via negotiations). On November 22, 2023, Israel and Hamas agreed to a four-day-long ceasefire, during which Israel gave 240 gunmen back to Hamas in exchange for 110 civilian hostages. After this Israel made little movement for five to six months, with Hamas remaining in Rafah.

Throughout the war, Israel has been repeatedly accused of war crimes including genocide, starvation, and torture. This has also led to large protests, such as encampment protests on college campuses. Around 30,000 Gazans have been killed, although Hamas does not distinguish between civilian and military casualties. Israel has stated that they killed at least 12,000 fighters, leaving around 18,000 civilians.

Sources edit

Zeke Miller, Aamer Madhani. "US says Rafah offensive would jeopardize cease-fire talks as Biden threatens to halt more Israel aid" — AP News, May 9, 2024