REHOBOTH BEACH, DEL. -- U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Sunday delivered some of the Biden administration鈥檚 strongest public criticism yet of Israel鈥檚 conduct of the war in Gaza, saying Israeli tactics have meant 鈥渁 horrible loss of life of innocent civilians鈥� but failed to neutralize Hamas leaders and fighters and could drive a lasting insurgency.
In a pair of TV interviews, Blinken underscored that the United States believes Israeli forces should 鈥済et out of Gaza,鈥� but also is waiting to see credible plans from Israel for security and governance in the territory after the war.
Hamas has reemerged in parts of Gaza, Blinken said, and that 鈥渉eavy action鈥� by Israeli forces in the southern city of Rafah risks leaving America's closest Mideast ally 鈥渉olding the bag on an enduring insurgency."
He said the United States has worked with Arab countries and others for weeks on developing 鈥渃redible plans for security, for governance, for rebuilding'' in Gaza, but 鈥漺e haven鈥檛 seen that come from Israel. ... We need to see that, too."
Blinken also said that as Israel pushes deeper in Rafah in the south, where Israel says Hamas has four battalions and where more than one million civilians have massed, a military operation may 鈥渉ave some initial success" but risks 鈥渢errible harm鈥� to the population without solving a problem 鈥渢hat both of us want to solve, which is making sure Hamas cannot again govern Gaza.鈥�
Israel's conduct of the war, he said, has put the country 鈥渙n the trajectory, potentially, to inherit an insurgency with many armed Hamas left or, if it leaves, a vacuum filled by chaos, filled by anarchy, and probably refilled by Hamas. We鈥檝e been talking to them about a much better way of getting an enduring result, enduring security.鈥�
Blinken also echoed for the first time publicly by a U.S. official the findings of a new Biden administration report to Congress on Friday that said Israel鈥檚 use of U.S.-provided weapons in Gaza likely violated international humanitarian law. The report also said wartime conditions prevented American officials from determining that for certain in specific airstrikes.
鈥淲hen it comes to the use of weapons, concerns about incidents where given the totality of the damage that鈥檚 been done to children, women, men, it was reasonable to assess that, in certain instances, Israel acted in ways that are not consistent with international humanitarian law,鈥� Blinken said. He cited 鈥渢he horrible loss of life of innocent civilians.鈥�
The war began on Oct. 7 after an attack against Israel by Hamas that killed 1,200 people, mostly civilians. About 250 people were taken hostage. Israel's offensive has killed more than 35,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, according to the health ministry in Gaza.
U.S. and UN officials say Israeli restrictions on food shipments since Oct. 7 have brought on full-fledged famine in northern Gaza.
Tensions between Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu about how the war, as well as domestic tensions about U.S. support for Israel with protests on U.S. college campuses and many Republican lawmakers saying that Biden needs to give Israel whatever it needs. The issue could play a major role in the outcome of November's presidential election.
Biden said in an interview last week with CNN that his administration would not provide weapons that Israel could use for an all-out assault in Rafah.
Blinken appeared on CBS' 鈥淔ace the Nation鈥� and NBC's 鈥淢eet the Press.鈥�
