Biden to Announce Gaza Port Construction for Aid Delivery

Facts

• US Pres. Joe Biden is expected to announce during his State of the Union address on Thursday that the US military is preparing to build a port in Gaza to deliver humanitarian aid to the strip's increasingly sick and starving population, according to a senior administration official.¹
• Unnamed US officials said the plan won't require American troops on the ground, though they reportedly didn't provide details about how the port would be constructed. One official noted that the US military — which began airdropping aid into Gaza recently — has “unique capabilities.'²
• Meanwhile, Hamas' delegation left Cairo on Thursday after negotiations failed to yield a breakthrough this week as mediators brace for a possible escalation during Ramadan. Though some mediators have expressed pessimism over the negotiations, the US signaled that it still felt a truce was possible.³
• Regarding tensions on the Lebanese border, Israeli military officials reportedly denied Lebanese reports that Israel had made March 15 the deadline for a diplomatic solution with Hezbollah before it would escalate the current border clashes into a full-scale war. One official said “there’s no date for going to war in Lebanon.”⁴
• International organizations are increasingly sounding the alarm over Gaza's humanitarian situation, with multiple agencies warning that some of the most vulnerable children in the strip have begun to starve to death. Additionally, around 1.5M displaced Palestinians have taken refuge in Rafah, which Israel has threatened to enter if a deal is not reached.⁵
• Gaza's Health Ministry said last week that the war's official death toll has surpassed 30K Palestinians, most of whom were women and children. The official Israeli death toll on Oct. 7 stands at around 1.2K people (and there are still over 100 hostages being held in the Gaza Strip).⁶

Sources: ¹FOX News, ²Associated Press, ³Al Jazeera, ⁴The Times of Israel, ⁵NBC and ⁶The New York Times.

Narratives

• Pro-establishment narrative, as provided by NBC. Israel must be able to defend itself from terrorist attacks from Gaza or elsewhere, and the US is committed to preventing malicious actors from threatening Israel's legitimate concerns. However, the Biden administration is losing its patience with Netanyahu's intransigence. This war needs to wind down, and all of the main actors involved must work toward a more permanent resolution. The humanitarian situation in Gaza is rapidly getting out of hand, and the situation must be remedied.
• Pro-Israel narrative, as provided by Jerusalem Post. Israel will always be thankful for the US' steadfast support, but the Biden admin. needs to refrain from tying Israel's hands behind its back. Neither Hamas nor Hezbollah are interested in negotiating in good faith, and the current status quo in both the north and south is unacceptable. In contrast to the terrorist tactics of Israel's enemies, Israel has done everything it can to ensure the safety of civilians in a war it did not want. Israel will pursue its goals, which are incredibly popular with its citizens, regardless of whether it annoys Washington or anyone else.
• Pro-Palestine narrative, as provided by The Nation. As Israel's slaughter of Palestinians in Gaza continues unabated, the Biden admin., increasingly anxious over the upcoming election, has resorted to cheap tactics to deny its support for Israel's brutal campaign. Regardless of how the administration tries to spin it, Biden has armed Israel, given it diplomatic cover, and refused to call for a permanent cease-fire — all of which incentivizes continued bloodshed. Indeed, Israel's war on Gaza would be unsustainable without US support, and Biden should enact concrete policy to stop the violence.
• Narrative D, as provided by Al Mayadeen. Hezbollah and the regional resistance will only end their attacks when Israel's war in Gaza ends. Indeed, the resistance's primary goal is to deter Israel from continuing the war in Gaza or violating Lebanon's sovereignty, not start a far larger regional war. Foreign powers believe they can dictate to Hezbollah how it deals with Israel's aggression and impose concessions regarding the status of Lebanon's southern border. However, Hezbollah has the leverage needed to ensure that Lebanon gains if any agreement is reached.