Things ain’t good on the political level between the leaders of America and Israel…
-
A bill that includes aid for Israel clears a critical hurdle in the U.S. Senate.
-
For many in Rafah, displacement is a recurring nightmare.
-
Israeli analysts say it is unlikely an invasion of Rafah is imminent. Here’s why.
-
Israel says the U.N. agency in Gaza didn’t do enough to root out infiltration by Hamas.
-
Israel is working on a ‘detailed plan’ to move Gazans north, Netanyahu says…..
…
The mounting frustration with Netanyahu has prompted some of Biden’s aides to urge him to be more publicly critical of the prime minister over his country’s military operation in Gaza, according to six people familiar with the conversations, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations.
The president, a staunch supporter of Israel who has known Netanyahu for more than 40 years, has been largely reluctant to take his private frustrations public so far, according to the people. But he is slowly warming to the idea, they said, as Netanyahu continues to infuriate Biden officials with public humiliations and prompt rejections of basic U.S. demands….
…
“Netanyahu is playing to his politics at home, and if he thinks it helps him to trash Biden publicly, he’ll do it,” said Frank Lowenstein, a former State Department official who helped lead Israeli-Palestinian negotiations in 2014.
One of the biggest reasons Biden has not been quicker to criticize Netanyahu, aides say, is his decades-long relationship with the prime minister. Biden often says he tells Netanyahu, “I love you, Bibi, even if I can’t stand you.”
Netanyahu has at times helped reinforce Biden’s view of Israel as a heroic bulwark against global antisemitism. During one visit when Biden was vice president, Netanyahu showed him photos of grossly antisemitic depictions that came from Hamas and argued such incitement was the reason he could not make peace with the Palestinians, according to a person familiar with the interaction, speaking on the condition of anonymity to describe a private exchange.
As Biden’s frustration grows, he has spoken less frequently with the Israeli leader. Their last conversation, in mid-January, was largely focused on the potential hostage deal, according to a senior administration official familiar with the conversation….