Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hit back at President Joe Biden after the American leader criticized the onslaught in Gaza. Netanyahu said he would order an attack on Rafah, and insisted his policies are popular among Israelis. While Biden said attacking Rafah was a “red line,” he restated that the US would never stop sending Israel weapons for “self-defense.”
In an interview with MSNBC on Saturday, Biden accused Netanyahu of “hurting Israel,” while Axios reported the White House was becoming “frustrated” with the PM’s “ungratefulness.”
Biden told MSNBC that if Israel attacked Gaza’s southern city of Rafah, it would cross a “red line” for Washington, but nonetheless added that he would also supply the weapons Israel needs for self-defense.
Tel Aviv claims its military actions in Gaza are a defensive response to the Hamas attack on October 7. “We’ll go there. We’re not going to leave. You know, I have a red line. You know what the red line is, that October 7 doesn’t happen again. Never happens again,” Netanyahu told Politico in an interview published on Sunday.
In five months, Israel has killed at least 31,000 Palestinians, about two-thirds women and children, and destroyed most of the infrastructure in the Strip. In the process, Israeli forces have displaced most of Gaza’s population of 2.3 million and triggered a humanitarian catastrophe that is nearing outright famine.
While the White House has worked to pressure Tel Aviv to accept a temporary ceasefire and bring major military operations to a close, Netanyahu said the high-intensity campaign would continue for at least four to six weeks and dismissed prospects for a pause in the fighting.
Recently, the Biden administration attempted to split Netanyahu’s policies from the overall sentiments of the Israeli people. During his MSNBC interviews, Biden charged that Netanyahu was “harming Israel.”
Netanyahu rebuked Biden, claiming his policies were widely accepted by Israelis. “The positions that I espouse are supported by the overwhelming majority of Israelis who say to you after October 7,” he said.
“I don’t know exactly what the president meant.” He continued, “But if he meant by that, that I’m pursuing private policies against the wishes of the majority of Israelis and that this is hurting the interests of Israel, then he’s wrong on both counts.”
According to recent polling in Israel, while Netanyahu isn’t personally popular, his policies resonate with the public. “Israelis repeatedly show a historically low level of confidence in the prime minister, while support for his Likud party keeps dwindling,” Ksenia Svetlova wrote for the Atlantic Council. “At the same time, it’s also clear that the general public in Israel supports Netanyahu’s policies…about two-thirds (63 percent) of the Jewish public do not support Israel agreeing in principle to an independent and demilitarized Palestinian state.”
In the interview, Netanyahu also denied that Palestinians are starving in Gaza, saying “We don’t have that kind of information. That’s not the information we have. And we monitor it closely.” The Israeli leader added, “More importantly, it’s not our policy. Our policies are to put in as much humanitarian aid as we could.”
The UN and a multitude of other humanitarian organizations have explained that the Israeli military campaign and restrictions on aid are fueling a humanitarian disaster. Aid groups estimate that about one-quarter of Gaza’s 2.3 million are in a state of starvation, while at least 20 people have reportedly starved to death already.
Kyle Anzalone is the opinion editor of Antiwar.com, news editor of the Libertarian Institute, and co-host of Conflicts of Interest.
Netanyahu owns Biden, and the rest of the US politicians. So, why should he pay any attention to what Biden says for domestic political consumption?
The only thing about Biden that Netan-yahoo does not ignore are the billions confiscated from US taxpayers to fatten his war chest and personal portfolio.
Netanyahu can ignore Biden but Biden can’t ignore Netanyahu.
It isn’t even remarkable anymore that when you compare Biden to Netanyahu, a certified crook whose intelligence consists for a great part of cartoons he draws on the way to a podium the latter one still is more credible than the first. No, the US has no ‘red lines’ to cross in the middle of supporting a Holocaust, and yes Israeli society has been so thoroughly morally corrupted, not least their ‘intelligentsia’, by their racist colonialist project that the genocide of a people they consider inferior to the point of not even being human, truly is popular. Be it so that the difference in tone that forms the sole divide between moderates and extremists demands a hardly enviable connoisseurship to notice.
Look to the hate fed the citizens of Gaza by Hamas,the Oct 7 pogrom,to understand the Israeli response.
Look to the Israeli response, all of its behavior, to see that it deserved what it got on Oct. 7.
Jake‘s anger should be directed at the IDF who killed at least 400 Israelis on 7.Oct . The IDF continues killing IDF POWs held in Gaza.
Hannibal Directive.
As compared to this? Who fed them the hate?
Israeli “demonstrators” bringing cotton candy machines and bouncy castles to create a fun, family-friendly atmosphere for their blockades to stop aid trucks from getting into Gaza.
So dispicable.
I’m having trouble finding the original source link for that other than this twitter account. Is there a saved screen grab of it? If not, it makes me question the accuracy although there are photos of people dancing elsewhere
https://twitter.com/paulg/status/176111737900883196
https://www.middleeasteye.net/sites/default/files/styles/article_page/public/images-story/000_34HR3W3.jpg.webp?itok=AO_C2aNB
I got that from a Caitlin Johnson piece. In reality it doesn’t really matter. They are protesting the aid getting in to stop the starvation so that in itself is despicable. Making it a family event just adds to their despicableness (not sure if that is actually a word).
Yes, but I don’t want to be a fool to propaganda, especially as one who routinely criticizes it. Know what I mean? Blocking aid is horrific, but making it a circus family fun day is another level of deviance beyond sociopathy.
I get it. I feel the same. But I trust Caitlin had reliable sources. And judging by the polls of Israeli citizens showing their support for the genocide, I have little doubt about the accuracy of what she said. And to me the difference is minimal. Once you protest the aid to starving children proceeding you have lost all morality. The family fun day is like an added adjective to me. Horrible. Or fucking horrible.
There is no understanding genocide. Anymore than understanding any mass murder or madness.
I understand the Israeli response to the challenge of Palestinians existing about as much as I understand the German response to the Jewish threat as Goebbels worded in the sportpalast speech.
Even though even at that stage in the war the Nazi’s still had to carefully select the audience to create the sought atmosphere, the Israeli don’t not need to bother with such minutes. Israeli Rabbi’s call for the extermination of women and children, Israeli doctors call for the total annihilation of medical infrastructure, Israeli soldiers indulge with glee, pure enjoyment and sadistic pleasure in every form of inhuman barbarism against unarmed, helpless civilians. There is no form of depravity filthy and evil enough that the Israeli do not engage in.
Zionism is showing all of its ugliness all at once. It is vomit inducing and sickening, when the stench of death rises from the star of David, but to Israeli and their Zionist backers it makes their chests swell with exuberant pride. Such is the working of true evil, that people engage in it with conviction, absolute certitude and true devotion.
There’s an old saying that goes- “The devil is not the devil because he’s a devil, but because he’s old.” In Joe Biden we see the shocking spectacle of a man grown so old in corruption that everything he says and does is a lie aimed only to self-aggrandize.
The “devil” is indeed in the details.
What a difference with Eisenhower! IKE knew from direct observation what air wars do to civilians. Biden does not.
Eisenhower did make bad decisions but stopping the attack on Egypt was an example of how one backs a “no” with positive action.
Biden is not an Eisenhower. Biden is a driveling talk-only.
In terms of educating Netanyahu, Biden has failed spectacularly.
“He [Biden] restated that the US would never stop sending Israel weapons for “self-defense.”
Another O’bummer red line with lots of ass kissing.
Nothing to see or learn about our treatment of these people for you. We will do as we please here. These days will live in infamy as the demented Genocide Joe Shuffles around the elephant in the room the blatant genocide that he is still supplying with more bullets & bombs to kill more & more innocent lives. Zionists are now Nazis by another name.for all to see
Why is president Joe Biden Netanyahu’s puppet regarding the genocide in Gaza?
Is this because he fundamentally agrees with the Israeli government’s inhuman killings of civilians in Gaza? Or, is it because the American political system has become so corrupt that rich lobbies control both politicians and policies?
In January 2010, when the Supreme Court decided that ‘money is speech’ and opened the gates of money in politics, it has become very difficult for anybody running for office not to become the lackey of big money interests. Voters have one vote each, but donators have billions of dollars.
Yes, both of those things. He and other western “leaders” were all raised to believe in the acceptability of murder and mayhem of civilians in pursuit of service to leaders of industry, their bosses.
Btw, the rule of lobbies over DC was in full effect far before 2010. e.g. in 2009, Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) on the influence of banks: “the banks, hard to believe in a time when we’re facing a banking crisis that many of the banks created, are still the most powerful lobby on Capitol Hill. And they frankly own the place.”
Chomsky and Herman wrote Manufacturing Consent way back in the 1980’s based mostly on research in the 70’s … narrative building and propaganda control of information is the heart of it.
Yes and yes.
Even the justices of the SCOTUS are corrupt.
The crime minister cannot see or think out-of-the-box…! Not all the Israeli citizens have bodyguards like he does when they travel abroad for vacation after the conclusion of this genocide to face unfriendly receptions…! Biden still doesn’t know his plan for Rafah…! Biden Red line will become Green line on the day of Rafah ground attack…! The Hamas Resistance fighting will definitely take a lot longer than Six Weeks…!
There are no red lines.
While Mass Murder will be going on in Rafah, what will Egypt, Jordan, Iraq, Iran, Saudi Arabia, etc., do? What will the so called “Democracies” do? Past time to deliver Freedom to the Palestinians, which means destroying the Israeli Nazi Army and all of it’s installations. Israel is a CANCER in the ME, it has to be cut back if Israelis want to live in Peace. Why is the ICC taking so long to put out arrest warrants for War Criminals Netanyahu, Biden, Sunak, ETC.? This is not 1950 where you have to go look for evidence, the evidence is before our eyes every day and on video for the History Books. The ICC needs to act now!
Ginah, American undercover agents have destroyed the credibility of most of the international institutions, that includes the UN and the ICC. What is left of the ICJ remains to be seen, the Israelis are not about to honor their judgement, and Biden is likely to compliment the Israelis. Most of the heads and officials of state in Western advanced democracies are human scum.
The quicker Israel falls the better for humanity. There is no need for such a vile KKK state who finds pleasure in torture and mass murder. I do no mean the elimination of Israel, but the removal of the current military and government apparatus that perpetuates the genocide playing out.
Israel needs to be demilitarized, the nation has become psychotic, just the IDF has turned the nations young men and women into sadistic bums and their parents don’t notice it? In Gaza all Palestinians are traumatized, it will take decades and generations to overcome it. Just to think about the trauma, to put it mildly, the amputations without anesthesia do to anyone including young children.
The thoughts alone are traumatizing normal people.
Israeli lies in American media are so common no one bothers to refute them any longer.
Whatever happened to Hamas? They are nowhere to be seen. All we see is up to the teeth armed IDF bums fighting and killing unarmed civilians, more than half of them children, girls and boys.
American media receives the approved news from Regev, the Israeli PR man and his younger colleague, and the Americans believe it as if it is the gospel truth.
What the sense of having congress or the Supreme Court if they can’t stop the president from giving weapons to a one sided war in Israel. It’s wrong it’s to much killing it don’t even add up to be call a war
The Supreme Court is very unlikely to involve itself. This is a foreign policy and “political question” issue.
https://constitution.congress.gov/browse/essay/artIII-S2-C1-9-6/ALDE_00001288/
And the Congress is fully under the control of the Israel lobby on matters relating to Israel. So far.
Putting down the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising was probably popular among Germans too.
1970-1974: USA Admiral Thomas Moorer: chairman of the Joint Chief of Staff: I’ve never seen a President, I don’t care who he is, stand up to them. It just boggles your mind. They always get what they want. The Israelis know what is going on all the time. I got to the point where I wasn’t writing anything down. If the American people understood what a grip those people have got on our government, they would rise up in arms. Our citizens don’t have any idea what goes on. (They Dare to Speak Out, Paul Findley, P-161)
Eighteen years ago, Professors John Mearsheimer and Stephen Walt wrote the book, “‘The Israel Lobby.” I highly recommend it. Also, if you go on Youtube and plug in their names you can see many of their debates, interviews, and podcasts. They are excellent for people seeking to know what is really going on in this country.
Yup, highly, highly recommended. Incisively argued, impeccably documented.
Here, for free, is the main paper in the series of pieces and presentations they did in the (long) runup to publication of the book:
https://www.hks.harvard.edu/publications/israel-lobby-and-us-foreign-policy
Thanks, will do it.
Why are we reporting Biden lies as if there is any semblance of truth to them? Not to mention Netanyahu lies?
Biden wants Netanyahu to do what he’s doing. He’s only faking being upset as a CYA to shore up his sinking election possibility.
Why people can’t comprehend that is pathetic. It’s like in order to be considered “responsible” you have to give these scum some benefit of the doubt. There is no doubt. Actions speak louder than words.
“Axios reported the White House was becoming ‘frustrated’ with [Netanyahu’s] ‘ungratefulness.’”
‘Um’ kin-fused – all th’money an’ bomb stuff f’rever no matter what means they owe us else…else our buds is…cheaters!…Don’t they unnerstand?’ the dazed shaking doddering mush-mouthed American commander in chief whined, as secret service steered him by the elbows offstage.
Next up: Presidential Pooch Savages Visiting French Ambassador – Biden Bearhugs ‘Commander,’ gives him snausages – ‘It’s what works best after he gets a little feisty.’
“Frustrated” sounds like good PR. Naïve people even believe it. Informed people know in who’s pockets the establishment elite is in, and who owns them.
That’s OK. Joe the Cleanser will continue to shovel as much lethality for use against the brown people as he can, all the while babbling about peace, and blah, blah, blah, but mostly babbling …………….