Gaza war
US State Department: Have no standards of their own for Israel
Israeli soldiers during a military operation in the West Bank. photo
© Majdi Mohammed/AP/dpa
The U.S. government must ask itself questions about whether it has double standards in assessing Israel’s actions in the Palestinian territories. According to reports, there is internal disagreement.
With a view to compliance with international law, this is important According to its own statements, the US State Department does not apply its own standards to Israel. “We hold Israel to the same standards as any other country,” said US State Department deputy spokesman Vedant Patel when asked in Washington on Tuesday. This applies to the Gaza Strip and areas outside the Gaza Strip. “International law must be followed and adhered to,” Patel continued. “And when we find violations or problems of concern, we not only raise them with the Israeli government, but also take appropriate action.”
On Monday, Patel confirmed that five Israeli military units had been found to have committed “serious human rights violations” before the Gaza war began on October 7. According to the information, four battalions have “effectively corrected” these violations, and the investigation into a fifth unit is still ongoing. However, Patel did not respond directly to journalists’ questions about exactly what the violations were, how they were remedied and whether sanctions were still being considered. Instead, he repeatedly emphasized that it was an “ongoing process.”
Biden’s frustration with the Israeli government
Last week, US broadcaster ABC News reported that the US had backed away from plans to sanction Israeli military units. Israel has promised measures to remedy grievances, the broadcaster reported, citing a letter from US Secretary of State Antony Blinken to House Speaker Mike Johnson. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had previously described the intention to impose sanctions as a “peak of absurdity” and a “moral low point”. The ProPublica report said that, according to several officials in the US State Department, Blinken’s inaction signaled to the Israelis that the US government was unwilling to take serious steps – contrary to what President Joe Biden has recently expressed more and more publicly Frustration with the Israeli government.
On February 8th, he demanded written assurances from foreign governments that military aid from the USA would not violate international law. The US State Department must inform Congress about the process in a report – the deadline for this is May 8th. For example, countries whose US aid is approved by Congress and which are currently in an armed conflict, including Israel, are affected. If countries do not submit their assurances within a certain period of time, military support should be interrupted. CNN reported at the weekend, citing a US government representative, that there was disagreement in the US State Department as to whether Israel’s commitments in this regard should be accepted as “credible and reliable”.