People ignored this section of Biden’s speech on the Hamas massacres because they were preoccupied with praising the positive aspects of it. ” I just ended a second call with Prime Minister Netanyahu. And I assured him that we would respond quickly, decisively, and forcefully if the United States went through what Israel is going through. We even talked about how acting in accordance with the rule of law makes democracies like Israel and the United States stronger and safer. Terrorists intentionally kill and target civilians. We uphold the law of war, exactly what it is. It’s important. There is a difference, and in private, there was” a more balanced tone ,” i.e., less pro-Israel. As Israel continues its enormous aerial campaign and prepares for a possible ground incursion in response to Hamas’s terror onslaught, US President Joe Biden reportedly urged Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during their Tuesday phone call to reduce civilian casualties in the Gaza Strip.
In a common speech on Tuesday that was warmly received by Jerusalem, Biden gave full-throated support for Israel, but in his call with Netanyahu, he seemed to have struck more on the right track.
According to NBC, Biden was more clear than usual in his calls for the IDF to work to prevent civilian casualties. He did this by citing two US officials who had formerly used Secretary of Defense Austin to pressure Israel into not carrying out democratic judicial reform. According to the Pentagon, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin spoke with his Jewish counterpart on Saturday, emphasizing Washington’s support for Israel security and talking about the significance of upholding the law of war.
The Pentagon stated in a statement that” during the call, he discussed the significance of upholding the law of war, including human protection obligations, and addressing the worsening humanitarian crisis in Gaza while Israel continues its operations to restore security.” Are Biden and Ukraine having these identical conversations? I don’t see any evidence of that. When it comes to cluster bombs, it doesn’t seem to be mentioned at all. I don’t care how Ukraine fights its wars, to be completely honest, but why does the Biden administration keep lecturing Israel about it but no Ukraine? Hamas does no strictly abide by some laws of war, while Russia does. There is no way to fight it that doesn’t involve human casualties because it operates behind civilians. Whose human casualties will they be is the question.
While people were busy applauding Biden’s good parts on the Hamas massacres, they missed this section. “I just got off — the third phone call with Prime Minister Netanyahu. I told him that if we experienced what Israel is going through, our response would swift, decisive and overwhelming. We also discussed how democracies such as Israel and the United States become stronger and more secure if they act in accordance with the rule of law. Terrorists deliberately target civilians and kill them. We uphold laws of war – the law of war. It matters. There was a difference. In private, he was less pro-Israel.
Biden’s full-throated support of Israel was widely welcomed by Jerusalem in a speech he gave on Tuesday. However, it appears that he struck a more balanced tone with Netanyahu.
US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin met with his Israeli counterpart in Washington on Saturday to discuss the importance of adhering the law of war and Washington’s support of Israel’s security.
Is Biden having the same conversations with Ukraine as well? I don’t see any sign of it. It seems that there was no mention of it in relation to cluster bombs. I don’t really care how Ukraine fights their wars. But is there a good reason why the Biden administration lectures Israel about how they fight wars but not Ukraine? Russia loosely adheres some laws of war; Hamas doesn’t. Hamas does not adhere to some laws of war, while Russia does.
