US makes major (empty?) threats against Israel – Day 374

US warns Israel of potential halt to arms transfers if Gaza aid is not distributed – some call the move a “cynical” ploy

The Guardian reports:

The Biden administration has warned Israel that it faces possible punishment, including the potential stopping of US weapons transfers, if it does not take immediate action to let more humanitarian aid into Gaza.

A letter written jointly by Antony Blinken, the US secretary of state, and Lloyd Austin, the defense secretary, exhorts Benjamin Netanyahu’s government to lift restrictions on the entry of assistance within 30 days or face unspecified policy “implications”.

Aid shipments to the embattled territory are currently at their lowest level in months, the UN said last week.

The letter complains of delays to US-funded aid at crossing points into Gaza and says the flow of assistance into the war-devastated territory has dropped by more than 50% since Israel promised last March to allow more deliveries.

White House spokesman John Kirby said that the letter was not intended as a threat, but “was simply meant to reiterate the sense of urgency we feel and the seriousness with which we feel it, about the need for an increase, a dramatic increase in humanitarian assistance” – something the Biden administration has pressed for repeatedly, to no avail.

“Israel must, starting now and within 30 days, act” on a series of specific steps, including letting in at least 350 aid trucks daily and instituting humanitarian pauses to Israeli military activity.

RESPONSIBLE STATECRAFT ADDS: Critics are panning the letter, calling it a political gambit that’s too little and too late.

Daniel Levy, president of the US/Middle East Project, points out “the degree of cynicism required to set a 30 day limit … which coincidentally, gets you past the election date.”

He adds that the Biden administration had many opportunities to make ultimatums, but hasn’t done so.

“The U.S. giving Israel 30 days to allow humanitarian aid into Gaza or face cuts in weapon shipments is the most dishonest and morally bankrupt announcement I’ve seen for a long time,” said former UK diplomat Ian Proud on X. “Surely U.S. voters aren’t so stupid they won’t spot a big can of worms kicked down the street until after the elections?”

OCHA ADDS: No food aid entered northern Gaza for 12 days, people have run out of ways to cope, food systems have collapsed, and the risk of famine is real, the World Food Program warns.

The escalating violence and the severing of all critical food aid lifelines is having a disastrous impact on food security in the northern part of the Strip, where at least three quarters of the population have been relying on food aid to survive.

ELSEWHERE: James Elder, a spokesman for the UN’s children’s agency UNICEF, said, “We see now what is probably the worst restrictions we’ve seen on humanitarian aid – ever.”

NOTE: Prior to the start of hostilities, an average of 500 truckloads of aid entered Gaza every working day. Today, more – not less – is needed, since Israeli airstrikes have destroyed much of Gaza’s farmland and food processing facilities. The US letter demands 350 a day.

RECOMMENDED READING: US threatens Israel but deploys troops, revealing policy inconsistency

The powerful American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) lobby group has condemned the letter from US officials giving Israel a 30-day deadline to implement “concrete measures” to reverse the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Gaza.

“Threatening to cut off American support for Israel… weakens our ally, undermines American interests, and sends a dangerous message to our common enemies,” AIPAC wrote in a post on X.

AIPAC is one of several pro-Israel lobby groups that have invested record amounts of money campaigning against members of the US Democratic Party who criticized Israel’s war on Gaza, including Representative Cori Bush who lost her primary election in August.

Israeli attack plans against Iran ready: ‘Only military targets’

The Cradle reports:

Israeli authorities have reached a full agreement on “the method, timing, and strength” of their expected attack against Iran and final approval is needed from the Security Cabinet before it is launched, according to information released by the Israeli Broadcasting Authority on 15 October.

According to informed sources who spoke with the Washington Post, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu last week reassured US President Joe Biden that “he is willing to strike military rather than oil or nuclear facilities in Iran.”

One of the officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, also mentioned that the Israeli response would be measured to avoid the perception of “political interference in US elections.”

“We listen to the opinions of the US, but we will make our final decisions based on our national interests,” Netanyahu’s office said in a statement released on Tuesday in response to the Washington Post report.

The White House declined to comment.

Lebanon endures banned Israeli weapons, evacuations

Various agencies report:

CLUSTER BOMBS: Hezbollah accused Israel, on Tuesday, of bombing areas in southern Lebanon with internationally banned cluster munitions, calling on international human rights and humanitarian organizations to “condemn this heinous crime by all standards, especially given its far-reaching negative impacts on civilians.”

EVACUATION: The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) said on 15 October that new Israeli evacuation orders to 20 villages in southern Lebanon meant that over 25 percent of the entire country was now affected.

PEACEKEEPERS: UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said at a news conference that Israeli troops have struck UN peacekeepers in Lebanon at least 20 times. “The Secretary General (Guterres) reiterates that UNIFIL personnel and its premises must never be targeted,” Dujarric said, adding that “attacks against peacekeepers are in breach of international law, including international humanitarian law. They may constitute a war crime.”

Hezbollah deputy chief tells Israel ‘the only solution is to stop firing’

The Cradle reports:

Hezbollah Deputy Secretary-General Naim Qassem delivered a speech on 15 October, telling Israeli leaders that the resistance group has “the right to target any point” inside Israel in response to the escalation inside Lebanon and reminding Tel Aviv that “the solution is to stop firing.”

“I’m telling the Israelis, the solution is to stop firing. The solution is a ceasefire … After a ceasefire, the [Israeli] settlers can return to the north,” Qassem said, adding that over two million settlers in the north would be “under constant threat” if Israel keeps the fires of war raging in Lebanon and Gaza.

“We cannot separate Lebanon from Palestine, nor the region from Palestine,” he said while stressing that the Al-Aqsa Flood operation is a legitimate right of the Palestinians that came following over 75 years of Israeli occupation.

“Our support for the Palestinians is support for justice because the Palestinians are rightful owners. Israel bets on the terror of its crimes that frighten others and on the absolute support from America,” he added undermining the power of Israel without the backing of the United States.

“The resistance will never be defeated because they’re the ones that own the land. They will fight and die in dignity. Victory will come with patience,” he stressed.

The Lebanese resistance leader added, “Since the Israelis targeted all of Lebanon, we also have the right to target any point of the Zionist regime, we will choose any point we deem appropriate.”

“Israel is an occupying entity that poses a real threat to the region and the world … Israel is an expansionist occupation that does not confine itself to Palestine … and enjoys absolute support from the US,” Qassem said, stressing that Hezbollah “cannot separate Lebanon from Palestine or the region from Palestine.”

“Operation Al-Aqsa Flood came after 75 years of occupation, and this is a legitimate right,” he added. Qassem also said that the entire region “faces the threat of a US-Israeli new Middle East project.”

International condemnation of Israel

Various agencies report:

FRANCE: French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot has condemned Israel for attacking the UN peacekeepers in Lebanon (UNIFIL), saying the assault constitutes a “clear violation of international law.”

UNITED STATES: The White House urged Israel Tuesday to respect the role of UN peacekeepers operating in Lebanon after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called for the force to withdraw. “UNIFIL plays an important role, a peacekeeping role in Lebanon,” said National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby, “and we respect that role. We want everybody to respect that role, including Israel.”

AUSTRALIA: Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong has condemned the “killing of innocent civilians by Israel in recent operations in Gaza” and described the humanitarian situation in northern Gaza as “unacceptable”.

NICARAGUA: President of Nicaragua Daniel Ortega compared Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu with Adolf Hitler, and called him “son of the devil” due to his “policy of terror.” Ortega’s statement comes three days after Nicaragua announced the rupture of diplomatic relations with Israel.

VENEZUELA: Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro described Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as a “monster created by the European Union and the US Empire,” and compared Netanyahu to Adolf Hitler, adding that even Hitler did not dare to do what the Israeli Prime Minister is currently doing. “Netanyahu bombed hospitals, schools, mosques and refugee camps in Gaza. Is this a war? This is genocide,” he said.

CUBA: On the occasion of a pro-Palestine march, led by Cuba’s President Miguel Diaz-Canel, the Cuban presidency’s official X account tweeted, “For the more than 16,000 children killed in Gaza, for the more than 11,000 women killed; also for the Lebanese people who have resisted in support of their neighbor and are today under Zionist missiles… Cuba is organizing its march today In front of the Embassy of the United States, the country that supplies Israel with weapons to kill innocent people, Cubans demand an immediate end to the war.”

TURKIYE, FINLAND: Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan yesterday called for sanctions to be imposed on Israel, urging the international community to halt all forms of support for the country in light of the ongoing conflict in the Middle East. Finnish Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen has called on the European Union to impose sanctions against Israel due to its escalating tensions in the Middle East.

SPAIN: Spain called on member states of the European Union to suspend the free trade agreement with Israel due to its “actions in Gaza and Lebanon.”

UNITED KINGDOM: In an urgent letter to Foreign Secretary David Lammy, the Independent Alliance demanded to know whether the UK government opposes genocide. The letter was written on the occasion of the 100-day anniversary of the new Labour government.

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