Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is no longer a productive partner for the administration of US President Joe Biden. This was reported by The Washington Post newspaper, citing sources.
According to The Washington Post, the contradictions between the leadership of Israel and the United States have significantly intensified. This has led to the fact that US President Biden and his aides “no longer view him (Netanyahu – NEWS-FRONT note) as a productive partner who can be influenced at least privately.
“Netanyahu’s accumulating frustration has led some of Biden’s aides to urge him to criticise the [Jewish state’s] prime minister more openly because of the military operation in Gaza,” the newspaper notes.
The Washington Post emphasises that the US displeasure was caused by the Israeli leadership’s unwillingness to make concessions for the sake of releasing hostages held by the radical Palestinian movement Hamas. The US administration also did not approve the plans of the Israeli army to attack the town of Rafah in the southern part of the Gaza Strip.
On 7 February, Netanyahu announced that the military was preparing for battles in Rafah on the border between the Gaza Strip and Egypt. The Israeli army was instructed to prepare a plan to evacuate civilians and eliminate all Hamas militants in the city. On 8 February, Biden said the Israeli authorities had overreacted to the 7 October Hamas attack. He also expressed hope for a ceasefire and the resumption of a pause in hostilities in the Gaza Strip.
The piece points out that the US will not yet restrict aid to Israel or impose conditions on it. “But many of its allies insist that even a dramatic change in rhetoric will not have a significant impact until the US begins to impose conditions on its support for Israel,” the paper concludes.
Earlier, the Human Rights Watch (HRW) human rights organisation reported that the Israeli army had used white phosphorus munitions banned by international conventions in strikes on sites in Lebanon and the Gaza Strip.