Abu Hurrairah Abbasi<\/p>\n
The historically strong bond be\u00adtween the White House and Is\u00adrael is showing signs of strain as the conflict in Gaza escalates into a se\u00advere humanitarian crisis. Israe\u00adli Prime Minister Benjamin Ne\u00adtanyahu is resisting the Biden administration\u2019s efforts to al\u00adter the current approach. President Joe Biden recently stated that a cessation of hos\u00adtilities in Gaza appeared proba\u00adble. However, Israeli Defense Minis\u00adter Yoav Gallant stated that regardless of a temporary cease-fire, Israel\u2019s mili\u00adtary operations in Gaza will persist un\u00adtil all captives are liberated.
\nThis serves as an additional demon\u00adstration of Washington\u2019s apparent in\u00adcapacity to control a significant part\u00adner while also demonstrating that the US and Israel are pursuing conflicting objectives. Repeatedly, ever since Israel initiated its armed operations in Gaza, the Biden administration has explicitly condemned the tactics used by the Is\u00adraeli government. However, the Biden administration has refused to reduce the military assistance it is giving to Is\u00adrael and constantly offers diplomatic protection for Israel at the United Na\u00adtions. It frequently stands alone in veto\u00ading global calls for a cease-fire.
\nDuring the recent hearings before the International Court of Justice regard\u00ading the validity of Israel\u2019s occupation of the Palestinian territories, the Unit\u00aded States was willing to support Israel. Upon the ICJ\u2019s issuance of a preliminary ruling in January regarding South Afri\u00adca\u2019s accusation of Israel\u2019s involvement in \u201cgenocide\u201d in Gaza, the ICJ ordered Israel to provide a plan for safeguard\u00ading civilians. In response, White House spokesperson John Kirby stated that the Biden administration viewed the ruling as aligning with their stances but refuted the notion that Israel\u2019s actions could be classified as genocide.
\nBiden administration has emphasized the necessity of establishing an auton\u00adomous Palestinian state as a crucial component towards achieving a last\u00ading peace, but Netanyahu vehemently opposes this stance. The Israeli leader from the right-wing political spectrum has also declined Biden\u2019s suggestions of granting a prominent position to the Palestinian Authority, which is situated in the West Bank, in shaping Gaza\u2019s des\u00adtiny once the conflict concludes.
\nAccording to Gaza\u2019s health ministry, which Hamas controls, Israel\u2019s persis\u00adtent air attacks and advancing ground invasion, along with the disruption of Gaza\u2019s water and electricity servic\u00ades, have resulted in the deaths of over 30,000 Palestinians. The United Na\u00adtions reports that Israeli limitations on the aid allowed into the besieged en\u00adclave, which is surrounded by a block\u00adade, have resulted in over 500,000 peo\u00adple experiencing starvation.
\nIn a broader sense, Netanyahu has shown no inclination to take construc\u00adtive measures towards a two-state solu\u00adtion after the war, despite it being the official stance of the United States. In addition to the concerns already raised regarding the Netanyahu government\u2019s commitment to democratic principles, further worries arise after October 7th.
\nGenerally, this is a peculiar circum\u00adstance. Scholars who analyze the rela\u00adtionships between allies have frequent\u00adly highlighted a phenomenon known as \u201centrapment.\u201d This refers to a situa\u00adtion in which a weaker party, referred to as the client state, in an imbalanced alliance, takes measures that force the stronger party, known as the patron state, to become involved in a conflict it originally intended to participate in. Indeed, this is occurring in certain re\u00adspects. Furthermore, the Biden ad\u00administration is not only providing dip\u00adlomatic protection to Israel but also furnishing Israel with the necessary weaponry to carry out its operations in Gaza, even if it means diverting support from Ukraine and Taiwan. The war has caused regional instability, including attacks by Iran-backed militias in Iraq and the Houthis in the Red Sea, which are not beneficial for the United States.
\nNevertheless, Israel\u2019s military opera\u00adtions have entangled the United States in an unwanted conflict, which is par\u00adticularly unfavorable timing-wise. This is due to the ongoing conflicts world\u00adwide that require attention on the in\u00adternational front and the need for the administration to concentrate on prep\u00adarations for the upcoming presidential election in November on the domestic front. From that perspective, the United States is caught in a difficult situation.
\nFurthermore, this situation is not simply detrimental to Washington\u2019s im\u00admediate interests. This is causing the United States to become international\u00adly isolated. This poses a significant chal\u00adlenge, considering the ongoing efforts by the United States to isolate Moscow since the commencement of Russia\u2019s complete invasion of Ukraine two years ago, a campaign that was already en\u00adcountering obstacles.
\nIt might be contended that the pres\u00adent condition of US relations with Is\u00adrael effectively demonstrates Washing\u00adton\u2019s power within the global system. The entity is both willing and capable of supporting an ally, regardless of the po\u00adtential outcomes. Historically, the Unit\u00aded States has consistently exercised its veto power in the Security Council and has often found itself in opposition to General Assembly resolutions that cen\u00adsure Israel. Occasionally, being a hege\u00admon can be a solitary experience. Fur\u00adthermore, a fundamental advantage of being a hegemon is that it provides the conditions for international involve\u00adment and influences the global struc\u00adture. They are not obligated to comply with the worldwide public opinion\u2019s unpredictable and fluctuating prefer\u00adences and wishes. Undoubtedly, the US\u2019s capacity to act according to its own will and timing is a fundamental factor that has consistently led to its portrayal as a bully or even worse.
\nHowever, even if that is true, it pro\u00advides little comfort. Israel\u2019s conduct is contradicting both the expressed pref\u00aderences of the Biden administration and the interests of the United States. The United States appears to be a soli\u00adtary dominant power due to the acts of an ally it cannot control yet is hesitant to sever ties with. The United States is currently attempting, but not succeed\u00ading, to achieve a delicate equilibrium between Israel\u2019s entitlement to geo\u00adpolitical security and the Palestinians\u2019 entitlement to human security. Occa\u00adsionally, the United States incurs tan\u00adgible expenses in order to maintain its alliance with Israel, and this is an in\u00adstance of those occasions. However, if these tensions last long, they can sig\u00adnificantly damage the US\u2019s aspirations for a balanced approach in the Mid\u00addle East. So, if the US wants to pursue its broader goals in the region, it must bring Israel to the negotiation table to justify its stance of being a peace pro\u00admoter state; otherwise, the delay in this regard can cost the US a lot.
\nThe Writer works as a Researcher with an Islamabad-based policy think tank, the Institute of Strategic Studies Islamabad. He can be reached at abuhurrairahah@gmail.com<\/p>\n
Courtesy<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Abu Hurrairah Abbasi The historically strong bond be\u00adtween the White House and Is\u00adrael is showing signs of strain as the conflict in Gaza escalates into a se\u00advere humanitarian crisis. Israe\u00adli Prime Minister Benjamin Ne\u00adtanyahu is resisting the Biden administration\u2019s efforts to al\u00adter the current approach. President Joe Biden recently stated that a cessation of hos\u00adtilities […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[13326],"class_list":["post-395001","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","category-article","tag-abu-hurrairah-abbasi"],"yoast_head":"\n