President Joe Biden of the United States threatened to withhold arms from Israel in the event that its forces launch a major invasion of Rafah, as ceasefire negotiations for the enclave continued in Cairo on Thursday.
As part of Israel’s seven-month offensive to destroy Hamas, Biden admitted that American-supplied bombs have killed civilians in Gaza.
These remarks, which are Biden’s most forceful to date, put more pressure on Israel to avoid an all-out attack on Rafah, the safe haven for hundreds of thousands of Palestinians who have fled fighting farther north in Gaza.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has stated that the Rafah operation will proceed, although the country did not immediately respond to Biden’s remarks.
Israel continued tank and aerial strikes on southern Gaza via the Rafah border crossing with Egypt after cutting off a critical aid route on Tuesday.
Biden is facing mounting pressure from his Democratic colleagues and campus protesters to deter Israel from invading Rafah.
After the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks that sparked Israel’s Gaza offensive, the US, Israel’s largest weapons supplier, accelerated deliveries.
