Report: US, European Countries Push Israel to Delay Gaza Invasion

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Facts

  • The governments of the US and a number of European countries have been quietly pushing Israel to delay a ground invasion of Gaza, according to multiple reports in US and Israeli media.1
  • In a New York Times report on Sunday, citing unnamed US officials, the publication said members of Pres. Joe Biden's administration were advising the delay in order to buy time in hostage negotiations, as well as to better fortify US interests in the region against possible Iranian-backed responses to the invasion.2
  • According to one US source who spoke to the Times, it was Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin who took the message of delay to the Israelis. The Times reported that this was because 'the Pentagon is helping advise Israel on military actions, including the ground invasion.'2
  • A few days earlier on Friday, the Times of Israel cited a senior diplomatic source in reports that the US government — in addition to a handful of European countries — was quietly pushing Tel Aviv to hold off from launching a ground invasion.3
  • Meanwhile, with Israeli forces still massed on the border with Gaza and a ground invasion still appearing imminent, the Israeli military continued to bombard Gaza on Monday. Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said it struck 320 targets in the last 24 hours. Since the Hamas attack that killed 1.4K Israelis on Oct. 7, more than 4.6K people have now been killed in Gaza, health authorities there said on Monday.4
  • In the meantime, while small amounts of aid have reached Gaza, the UN has reiterated calls for the expansion of the number of border crossings. The agency said that deliveries so far have amounted to a fraction of what's needed to address humanitarian issues with shortages of food, water, medicine, and fuel. Elsewhere, with reports of Israeli attacks on Lebanon and clashes with Palestinians in the West Bank continuing in the last day, there remain signs the conflict has a chance of spreading.4

Sources: 1The Times of Israel (a), 2The New York Times, 3The Times of Israel (b) and 4Reuters.

Narratives

  • Pro-Israel narrative, as provided by The Times of Israel. While the US and other allies don't tell Israel what action to take, they do advise Tel Aviv and are helping the aim of eliminating Hamas. In this instance, the allies warn that hostages, some of which come from a number of these Western countries, would be more difficult to retrieve if a ground invasion started immediately.
  • Pro-Palestine narrative, as provided by Al Jazeera. Even within the Biden administration, there's a documented pushback against full support for Israel's military actions in Gaza and the resulting humanitarian cataclysm. A 'dissent cable' may be soon coming from US diplomats rejecting unwavering support of Tel Aviv's military campaign. The quiet urging of the White House for Israel to delay its dreaded ground invasion may be a reflection that many within the Biden administration are also advocating for Palestine's civilians.

Predictions