U.S. Humanitarian Ultimatum to Israel Fails to Impact Military Aid
On October 13, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin issued a formal communication to the Israeli government, signaling a firm ultimatum regarding humanitarian assistance to the Gaza Strip. The letter stated that if Israel did not notably enhance the delivery of humanitarian aid within a month, the United States would reconsider its military assistance to Israel. However, as the deadline passed, reports from various NGOs and data from the Israeli government indicate that the humanitarian situation in Gaza has deteriorated, with October witnessing the least amount of aid entering the region since the onset of conflict.
Despite the grim reports, the Biden administration has since retreated from its initial stance. Officials have made it clear that military support to Israel will continue unabated, despite the dire humanitarian circumstances.
The crisis in the Gaza Strip has escalated, especially in its northern regions, where Israel has intensified military operations since early October. Humanitarian aid has faced significant shortages across the strip during the month, a situation corroborated by both NGOs and the Israeli government's own data through COGAT (the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories). In October, only 26,399 tons of humanitarian aid were recorded as entering Gaza, a sharp decline from 87,445 tons in September, which already represented a stark decrease compared to months prior when aid exceeded 100,000 tons at times.
The flow of aid trucks has similarly plummeted, with merely 1,386 recorded in October, in contrast to over 4,000 in both August and September, and close to 6,000 in July. Even before the war, the region was reliant on over 600 trucks daily to meet the basic needs of its populace. During the most favorable months of the previous year, the daily average was still under 250 trucks.
Israel's government posits that the aid reduction stems from a broader decline in international food and necessities delivery. However, many NGOs and local institutions claim this is a deliberate tactic by Israel to restrict or complicate the delivery of aid.
In their correspondence, Blinken and Austin urged the Israeli authorities to permit a minimum of 350 aid trucks into Gaza daily—a threshold never achieved—and additionally requested the establishment of humanitarian zones for displaced civilians and increased accessibility for aid distribution by humanitarian organizations. Notably, by the end of October, the Israeli authorities declared UNRWA, the United Nations entity for Palestinian refugees, illegal, further complicating the situation.
On Tuesday, U.S. State Department spokesperson Vedant Patel reiterated that there was no intention to cut military assistance to Israel, thus contradicting the statements made by Blinken and Austin. Patel mentioned that some progress has been observed in recent days, with a new border crossing for aid opening. Nonetheless, the number of trucks entering Gaza remains significantly lower than required. Just 117 trucks crossed on Tuesday and 125 the previous day.
This humanitarian aid issue intersects with U.S. law, which stipulates that military assistance cannot be allocated to nations engaged in serious human rights violations and impeding American humanitarian efforts. Despite substantial evidence suggesting otherwise, the U.S. administration continues to assert that Israel has not breached these legal stipulations, thereby justifying the ongoing arms shipments.
Contradicting this viewpoint, the investigative news outlet ProPublica, in September, reported findings from U.S. agencies asserting that Israel is purposefully obstructing aid to Palestinians in Gaza, a transgression against U.S. law. Yet, the administration has largely ignored these assessments and persisted in its military support for Israel. As these developments unfold, the humanitarian crisis in Gaza deepens, raising pressing questions about accountability, international law, and U.S. foreign policy.
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