U.S. Pushes to Shape Israel’s Rafah Operation, Not Stop It

Rafah has been at the center of a growing rift between Israeli and U.S. political leaders. Those tensions boiled over on Monday, when Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu canceled a visit to Washington by top aides to discuss U.S. concerns over the planned offensive on Rafah, where Hamas fighters are making a final stand. The tit-for-tat move was in response to the U.S. abstaining from a United Nations Security Council resolution that called for an immediate cease-fire while also demanding the release of hostages.

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, however, proceeded with his meetings at the White House and Pentagon on Monday and Tuesday, which had been previously scheduled. Gallant is part of Israel’s three-member war cabinet that includes Netanyahu and Benny Gantz, the prime minister’s chief political rival.

…

Both sides also agreed that the Hamas battalions in Rafah must be dislodged so that the militants cannot attempt a comeback or continue to smuggle weapons into the enclave, which are prerequisites for ending the war and paving the way for a new political authority in Gaza. And that means trying to find ways to work with Israel on its Rafah strategy, for lack of better options.

Related:

Washington sends Israel more city-busting bombs to level Rafah

Coming after a series of high-level US-Israeli meetings to plan Israel’s offensive on Rafah, Washington is sending a clear message that it is giving Israel a green light to level the city, where over 1.5 million people are crammed together in inhuman conditions.

These 2,000-pound bombs are equivalent in size to the so-called “blockbuster” bombs that leveled entire city blocks during World War II. When detonated, they leave craters 40 feet in length and kill and maim people up to 1,200 feet away, over an area equivalent to 58 soccer fields.

Gaza: Security Council passes resolution demanding ‘an immediate ceasefire’ during Ramadan and it’s legally binding!