play videoplay video

Video duration: 29 minutes 43 seconds 29:43

Experts and political analysts who spoke to the program “Gaza...What Next?” agree; However, the statements made by US President Joe Biden regarding Israel do not represent a strategic shift in the US administration’s position on Israel, but rather reflect its dissatisfaction with the government of Benjamin Netanyahu.

In unprecedented statements criticizing Israeli behavior, Biden described the Israeli response behavior in the Gaza Strip as exceeding the limit, and stressed that he is working to reach a sustainable cessation of fighting.

As for the senior researcher at the Al Jazeera Center for Studies, Dr. Liqaa Makki, Biden’s statements confirm that he is dissatisfied with the approach adopted by Netanyahu, as he wants to continue his war on Gaza, and does not take into account the sensitivity of the US administration’s position in the election year, even though this administration has not stopped supporting Israel at all levels.

For his part, Professor of Political Science and International Relations, Dr. Khalil Al-Anani, called for not exaggerating regarding Biden's statements, because they do not represent a strategic shift in the American position on supporting Israel, and will remain a dead letter unless they are accompanied by practical measures.

Biden's statements - as Al-Anani adds - came as a result of extreme frustration, especially after the miserable failure of the tour of US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, who visited the Arab region within the framework of 3 important files. First, he failed regarding the possibility of achieving a major deal for normalization between Saudi Arabia and Israel, as the Saudi Foreign Ministry issued a strong statement. He refuses to recognize Israel unless three conditions are met: recognition of a Palestinian state on the 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital, a complete cessation of Israeli aggression against the Gaza Strip, and complete Israeli withdrawal from the Strip.

Blinken also failed - Al-Anani adds - to convince Netanyahu that the solution to the conflict is linked to agreeing on a path that leads to the establishment of a Palestinian state, as the Israeli Prime Minister rejects the existence of such a state, in addition to the failure of the American minister to reach a truce agreement, exchange prisoners, and enter into a path that ends the war on Gaza. .

A previous meeting between US President Joe Biden (right) and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (Reuters - Archive)

The expert in Israeli affairs, Dr. Muhannad Mustafa, linked the US President’s latest position to what the Israeli right seeks to rebuild its settlement project in the Gaza Strip, a project that contradicts very greatly with American interests and vision.

According to Mustafa, Netanyahu himself clashes directly with the American discourse, when he announces his rejection of the deal and the truce in the Gaza Strip, which is an important pillar of the American perception of the day after the war.

Rafah operation

Regarding Netanyahu’s plan to carry out military operations in Rafah, south of the Gaza Strip, the expert in Israeli affairs said that Netanyahu and the right insist on this operation, and orders have been given to the army to develop a plan on this matter, stressing that this operation contradicts the Egyptian and American positions, in addition to that it will bring more From internal protests, because such an operation would lead to the killing of Israeli prisoners held by the Palestinian resistance.

The professor of political science and international relations described the Battle of Rafah as a "time bomb", given the dense population in this region, which means more bloody Israeli massacres against the Palestinians.

There is also an issue related to the possibility of the exodus of Palestinians to Egypt, which would mean placing a burden on an important ally of America.

The White House announced yesterday, Thursday, that it would not support any Israeli plans to carry out major military operations in Rafah, and that negotiations were continuing regarding the release of detainees and the completion of a truce agreement in Gaza.

Biden also revealed that Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi did not initially want to open the Rafah crossing for aid to enter the Gaza Strip, but he spoke to him and convinced him to open it.

Source: Al Jazeera