US Military Aid to Israel Continues Despite Worsening Gaza Crisis

US Military Aid to Israel

US will not cut military aid to Israel over Gaza issue

The United States has acknowledged limited progress by Israel in increasing humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip while deciding not to restrict arms transfers despite ongoing concerns. The U.N. has reported a critical humanitarian situation in northern Gaza, with 85% of aid coordination attempts in October rejected by Israeli authorities, leading to warnings of imminent famine.

Israeli officials refute claims of aid limitations, attributing delays to Hamas and the U.N., while Palestinian representatives call for independent media verification of the situation, citing restrictions on journalists. In response to the escalating conflict, the elected members of the Security Council are working on a resolution to protect civilians, call for an immediate ceasefire, and facilitate increased humanitarian aid.

Key Concepts

• The U.S. acknowledged limited progress by Israel in increasing humanitarian aid to Gaza, as requested by Washington.
• The Biden administration decided not to restrict arms transfers to Israel despite the ongoing humanitarian crisis.
• U.S. officials are evaluating whether Israel has violated U.S. law concerning military aid.
• A deadline was set for Israel to enhance aid to Gaza, with warnings of potential military assistance reductions.
• The U.N. reported that aid access to Gaza has reached its lowest point in a year due to Israeli military actions.
• Humanitarian conditions in northern Gaza are critical, with a significant percentage of aid requests being blocked by Israeli authorities.
• There are urgent famine warnings from U.N. food security experts regarding northern Gaza.
• Israel’s ambassador to the U.N. dismissed famine claims as “harmful propaganda” and highlighted aid deliveries made in October.
• Palestinian officials are calling for independent media access to verify the humanitarian situation in Gaza.
• The Security Council is drafting a resolution to address urgent humanitarian needs and protect civilians in the conflict.

The United States said on Tuesday (November 12) that Israel has made limited progress in increasing the flow of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip as requested by Washington, and the Biden administration will not restrict arms transfers to Israel.

“We have not assessed at this moment whether Israel has violated US law,” U.S. State Department Deputy Spokesperson Vedant Patel told reporters.

The U.S. government told Israel on October 13 that Israel must increase aid to Gaza within a month or face a reduction in military aid. The situation in the Gaza Strip has triggered a catastrophic humanitarian crisis after the 13-month Israeli-Palestinian war. The U.S. government’s deadline is Tuesday.

“We are not going to give Israel a pass,” Patel said. “We want to see an improvement in the overall humanitarian situation, and we think some of these measures will create the conditions for it to continue to progress.”

Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with Israel’s top national security adviser Ron Dermer in Washington on Monday to discuss the measures Israel has taken.

U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield told the Security Council that Israel had taken some important steps, including restoring aid to northern Gaza, but must ensure its actions were “fully implemented and sustained improvements over the long term.”

“We continue to reiterate that there must be no policy of forced evictions or starvation in Gaza, as this would have serious implications for the United States and international law,” she said.

A senior U.N. human rights official said at the same meeting that aid access to Gaza had fallen to “its lowest level in a year” and criticized Israel’s military actions in the north.

“All countries must assess the sale, transfer or provision of arms and military, logistical or financial support to a party to the conflict in accordance with their obligations under international law and terminate such support if it risks serious violations of international law,” said Ilze Brands Kehris, U.N. Assistant Secretary-General for Human Rights.

Israel denies limiting aid to Gaza and accuses the United Nations and aid agencies of slow distribution and Hamas of stealing it.

Eight international aid groups said earlier Tuesday that Israel had failed to comply with 15 of the 19 measures demanded by the United States and only partially complied with four.

“Not only has Israel failed to meet U.S. standards for supporting a humanitarian response, it is currently taking actions that are seriously exacerbating the situation on the ground, particularly in northern Gaza,” the report said. “The situation on the ground is more dire today than it was a month ago.”

Asked what rating the U.N. would give Israel, spokesman Stephane Dujarric did not give a rating but said, “I think it’s clear from what we’ve been saying over the last few days and frankly for longer that we are nowhere near the levels we need.”

While aid entering Gaza is generally insufficient, the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said northern Gaza is particularly bad, with 85% of attempts to coordinate aid convoys and humanitarian visits to northern Gaza in October being rejected or blocked.

“As I have briefed you, Israeli authorities are blocking humanitarian assistance from reaching northern Gaza, where fighting continues and water and food supplies remain dwindling for some 75,000 people,” acting humanitarian chief Joyce Msuya told the Security Council. “

Conditions across Gaza are unfit for human survival,” she said.

Famine warning

United Nations food security experts issued an urgent warning Friday that famine is likely to occur or is imminent in parts of northern Gaza and that immediate action is needed to avert a disaster.

“By the time a famine is declared, people have already starved to death, with irreversible consequences that will last for generations,” Rein Paulsen, director of the FAO’s emergency and resilience work office, told the Security Council.

“The opportunity to deliver this assistance is now, today, not tomorrow,” he said.

Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations told reporters before the Security Council meeting that the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) Famine Committee report was “harmful propaganda” against Israel and “full of unfounded and defamatory claims.”

“As I have said here in the past, there are agencies that are dedicated to real humanitarian work, and there are agencies like the IPC that prioritize smearing Israel over actually helping those in need,” Danny Danon said.

He told the Council that the IPC’s call for an impending famine in northern Gaza was “completely false,” and that Israel facilitated 713 truckloads into the north in October. He said there were more than a dozen bakeries across Gaza making pita bread, and overall Israel was allowing aid to come in through multiple crossings, including the Kissufim crossing into central Gaza, which opened Tuesday after being closed 19 years ago.

“Is this the behavior of a country that wants to cause a famine?” Danon asked.

Palestinian envoy Riyad Mansour said Israel should allow international journalists into Gaza to see for themselves if a famine is occurring.

“We need international media, independent media to report and accurately document what is happening,” he told reporters. “This is genocide in northern Gaza, and we need international media to report this story.”

Israel has allowed only a handful of selected journalists to enter Gaza with its troops for brief tours to view Hamas tunnels during the 13-month war. Israel has also closed the Israeli bureau of Qatar’s Al Jazeera television station. At least 137 journalists and media workers have been killed, almost all of them Palestinians, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists.

As the situation deteriorates, the 10 elected members of the Security Council are drafting a draft resolution on the protection of civilians in the conflict and the immediate need for a ceasefire, the release of hostages, and increased aid.