Biden s pattern with Israel: public support, private scolds
AAMER MADHANI, Associated Press
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1of8FILE - In this March 9, 2010, file photo, then-U.S. Vice President Joseph Biden walks in the cemetery on Mt. Herzel in Jerusalem.Ariel Schalit/APShow MoreShow Less
2of8FILE - In this Oct. 22, 1970, file photo, Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meir speaks at the United Nations, Oct. 22, 1970.APShow MoreShow Less
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4of8FILE - In this March 9, 2010, file photo, then-U.S Vice President Joe Biden shakes hand with Israel s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the Prime Ministers residence in Jerusalem.Ariel Schalit/APShow MoreShow Less
5of8FILE - In this June 29, 1982, file photo, Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin speaks to Israeli Parliament members at the Knessett about the situation in Lebanon.Castelnuovo/APShow MoreShow Less
For days, as Hamas rockets flew
towards Israel and Israeli air strikes pounded Gaza, Mr Biden resisted mounting calls from some Democrats and UN Security Council members to more forcefully pressure Israel for a ceasefire.
On Wednesday, in their fourth conversation in eight days, Mr Biden told Mr Netanyahu he expected a “significant de-escalation” by day’s end on the path to a ceasefire, according to the White House.
But hours later, Mr Biden did not make even a passing reference to the Gaza war or his diplomacy during a commencement speech at the US Coast Guard Academy as he spoke of the need to face accelerating global challenges.
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Biden s pattern with Israel: public support, private scolds
FILE - In this March 9, 2010, file photo, then-U.S. Vice President Joseph Biden walks in the cemetery on Mt. Herzel in Jerusalem. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit, Pool, File)
FILE - In this Oct. 22, 1970, file photo, Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meir speaks at the United Nations, Oct. 22, 1970. (AP Photo)
May 20, 2021
Muriel AsseburgSenior Fellow in the Middle East and Africa Division of the German Institute for International and Security Affairs
The EU and its member states can do little to mediate a cessation of violence between Israel and Hamas due to their self-imposed no-contact policy toward Hamas.
But they can contribute to de-escalation by addressing the security needs, rights, and religious feelings of both populations rather than framing the conflict mainly as one between Israel and a terrorist organization, in which they take Israel’s side.
What is more, they can support ending impunity for war crimes and crimes against humanity by backing the International Criminal Court’s investigation into suspected crimes committed by both Palestinian armed groups and Israel rather than trying to undermine the court’s work.