Biden’s foolish plan for post-war Gaza
By
Sean Durns
June 15, 2024 6:00 am
The Biden administration’s plans for post-war Gaza represent a significant departure in the U.S.-Israeli relationship and could endanger American lives.
According to a recent Politico report, the White House is “coalescing around plans for an interim ‘Palestinian Council’ to govern Gaza and a security coalition in which the U.S. military will play a major role.” If true, such a plan would be disastrous for the United States, Israel, and Palestinians.
The United States has spent decades bogged down in state-building in the Middle East with very little to show for it. After Iraq and Afghanistan, American popular opinion is unlikely to sustain such an effort, and taxpayers are unlikely to be willing to pay for it. Moreover, Washington faces a growing array of security problems, including a Russia that menaces its neighbors in Europe and a China that seeks to dominate Asia and beyond.
Indeed, the challenge posed by Beijing is immense. China is America’s sole peer competitor, with economic and military power that dwarfs that of Russia, Iran, and North Korea. To deter China from its goal of invading Taiwan and becoming the preeminent power in the Pacific, the United States will have to prioritize. Sending military personnel to Gaza is a distraction that Washington can’t afford. It would also be doomed to failure.
Israel has been explicit about its goal in the present conflict: the destruction of Hamas, the U.S.-designated terrorist group that launched the war by invading the Jewish state and massacring and kidnapping its citizens. Yet, at several points, the Biden administration has effectively worked to preserve the terror group, which itself is a proxy of Iran, China’s chief ally in the region. The White House has pressured Israel not to invade Rafah, Hamas’s last stronghold, while simultaneously failing to pressure countries like Turkey and Qatar, both of which provide sanctuary and funds to the organization.
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