The Biden administration is sharing intelligence with Israel to help you achieve Hamas leadership and conduct other combat operations in hopes of limiting the Rafah invasionaccording toThe Washington Post.
For weeks, Israeli authorities have warned of an imminent invasion of the southern city of Rafah, where more than a million Palestinians have fled to escape fighting in the north of the country. Gaza.
On Sunday, the exodus of Palestinians from the last refuge of Gaza accelerated as Israeli forces advanced deeper into Rafah. Israel also attacked the territory’s devastated north, where some Hamas militants have regrouped in areas the military said it had been cleaned months ago.
Rafah is considered Hamas’ last stronghold. About 300,000 of the more than 1 million civilians sheltering there fled the city following evacuation orders from Israel, which says it must invade to dismantle Hamas and return dozens of hostages taken from Israel in the October 7 attack that triggered the war. .
O White House, the State Department and several Democrats vehemently oppose these plans, stating that the US does not believe an attack can be carried out with due consideration for civilians caught in the crossfire. President Joe Biden counted CNN last week that it would cut off specific types of military aid to Israel if a large-scale attack was launched on Rafah.
“We will continue to ensure that Israel is secure in terms of the Iron Dome and its ability to respond to the attacks that have recently emerged in the Middle East,” he said. “But yeah, it’s just wrong. We’re not going to – we’re not going to provide the guns and the artillery shells.”
On Sunday, the Washington Post reported new details of the Biden administration’s measures to limit Rafah attacks. The US intelligence community is reportedly sharing information with its Israeli counterparts to help the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) locate Hamas leadership, as well as the group’s alleged tunnel system that allegedly exists throughout Gaza.
Biden administration officials committed to sharing information with “the hope of persuading Israel to conduct a more limited and targeted operation in the southern Gaza city,” the report said. Publish reported.
An unidentified employee told the Publish: “We have serious concerns about how Israel has conducted this campaign, and all of this could come to a head in Rafah.”
The Independent has reached out to the State Department for comment.
Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar remains in hiding. The group maintains a political office in Qatar, through which limited negotiations have taken place, facilitated by the US.
More than 35,000 people have died in Gaza since the war began seven months ago, according to estimates by the local health authority.
More than 1,100 Israelis died in the October 7 terrorist attack that triggered the conflict, the deadliest in Israel’s history. More than 100 of the 251 hostages taken from Israel that day are believed to be in the territory.
President Biden has become increasingly frustrated with Israel’s handling of the war against Hamas, and his administration in recent days halted a shipment of high-payload weapons to the ally, as U.S. officials increasingly point to an attack on Rafah as a “red line”.
At the same time, the Biden administration has faced increasing criticism from Democrats over all military assistance to Israel, given allegations of war crimes committed by Israeli forces.
With reporting from the Associated Press
