Blinken speaks to Israel’s Dermer about humanitarian situation in Gaza
On October 13, the administration of US President Joe Biden gave Israel a 30-day deadline to increase the flow of humanitarian supplies into Gaza, failing which Washington would scale back military support to its key ally.
Today, the US State Department said in a statement that US Secretary of State Antony Blinken held meetings with Israeli Minister of Strategic Affairs Ron Dermer and emphasised “the importance of ensuring those changes lead to an actual improvement in the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza”.
Earlier today, eight international rights groups in a letter said Israel has failed to meet the deadline set by the US.
As expected, see no evil, hear no evil
US State Department says Israel not found in violation of US law on Gaza aid
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin sent a letter last month to Israel voicing alarm over the humanitarian situation in Gaza and setting a deadline of November 13 to comply with US law on permitting humanitarian assistance.
“We have not made an assessment that they are in violation of US law,” State Department spokesman Vedant Patel said when asked if Israel had met the demands.
“The overall humanitarian situation in Gaza continues to be unsatisfactory. These actions that we have seen, we think that these are steps in the right direction. We want to see more steps. We want to see these steps sustained over a significant period of time, and ultimately, we want to see these steps have a result on the situation.”
Flat out lies, but expected.
Eight humanitarian organisations say Israel hasn’t met any metrics for US law compliance
At the Blinken-Austin letter’s 30-day deadline, eight humanitarian organisations assess that the Israeli government has not met any of the administration’s metrics for US law compliance on relief in Gaza.
The organisations are Refugees International, Anera, Care, Mercy Corps, NRC, Oxfam, MedGlobal and Save the Children.
The agencies published a scorecard on Israel’s compliance with US demands on humanitarian access. Across the board, they said, the Israeli government has failed to comply with US and international law on relief in the besieged coastal enclave.
For similar reasons, this scorecard also provides one concrete way for the ICC and ICJ to assess the questions of the will and intent of the Israeli government with respect to humanitarian aid obstruction and collective punishment.
— Jeremy Konyndyk (@JeremyKonyndyk) November 12, 2024
Trump picks Mike Huckabee for US ambassador to Israel
Donald Trump said he is going to nominate former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee to be the US ambassador to Israel.
Huckabee is a staunch defender of Israel and his intended nomination comes as Trump has promised to align US foreign policy more closely with Israel’s interests as it wages wars in Gaza and Lebanon.
“He loves Israel, and the people of Israel, and likewise, the people of Israel love him,” Trump said in a statement.
Huckabee was the governor of Arkansas from 1996 to 2007 and spent two decades as an evangelical minister in a number of US churches.
Mike Huckabee speaks during a news conference at the Christians United for Israel’s 10th annual summit
Huckabee, an evangelical Christian, is a staunch supporter of Israel and defender of illegal Israeli settlements. He is also a proponent of Israeli annexation of the occupied West Bank.
Huckabee, 69, has criticised Biden for even applying mild pressure on Israel to moderate its conduct in its war on Gaza.
“If a person is pro-Israel, how can you be pro-Biden because the Biden administration has made it very clear they will make concessions to Hamas,” Huckabee said in an interview in March on News Nation.
Huckabee has led paid tour group visits to Israel for years, frequently advertising the trips on conservative-leaning news outlets.
David Friedman, who served as Trump’s ambassador to Israel in his first term, said he was “thrilled” by Trump’s selection of Huckabee.
