A senior Biden official said Monday that the U.S. does not believe Israel’s “total victory” over the militant group Hamas is “likely or possible.”
Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell talked about the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas during the NATO Youth Summit in Miami, just days after the Biden administration suspended some arms shipments to Israel.
“I think in some respects we are struggling to know what the theory of victory is. Sometimes when we listen closely to Israeli leaders, they mostly talk about the idea of some kind of sweeping victory on the battlefield, a total victory,” Campbell said.
“I don’t think we believe that’s likely or possible,” he added.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to seek an “absolute victory” over Hamas, which attacked southern Israel on October 7, 2023. The Israeli military has moved into Rafah in recent days, where more than 1 million Palestinians were at one point seeking refuge from war.
Campbell explained that the US believes there needs to be “a more political solution” to the war.
“I will say that what is different from the past is that, in this sense, many countries want to move towards a political solution in which the rights of Palestinians are more respected,” he said.
“I don’t think it has ever been as difficult as it is now, but I still believe that the commitment exists. And we also hear this more and more from countries in the region.”
His comments came after President Biden said last week that he would stop sending offensive weapons to Israel if it invaded Rafah, where the Biden administration has repeatedly warned against invading.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Sunday that the US has seen no Israeli plan to protect civilians or the future of Gaza after the war.
“We believe in two things. First, there needs to be a clear and credible plan to protect civilians, which we have not yet seen. Secondly, we also need to see a plan for what happens after this conflict in Gaza… is over,” he said on CBS’s “Face the Nation.”
This story originally appeared on thehill.com read the full story
