US officials said on Tuesday that the Israeli strike on Sunday that killed dozens of Palestinians in Rafah did not constitute a violation of President Joe Biden’s “red line” and therefore may continue to receive weapon shipments.
The Sunday attack caused a lethal fire to form, killing at least 45 people (including children) and wounded 249. It was denounced by leaders in Europe, Egypt, China, and the United Nations. Reporters observed on Tuesday Israeli tanks entering Rafah for the first time.
White House National Security Communications Advisor John Kirby called the strike “tragic”: “We still don’t believe that a major ground operation in Rafah is warranted […] we haven’t seen that at this point […] every single loss of innocent life is tragic.”
Q: "Can you explain how the strike in Rafah does not cross the lines that the president has set…?
John Kirby: "We still don't believe that a major ground operation in Rafah is warranted…we haven't seen that at this point…every single loss of innocent life is tragic." pic.twitter.com/EttKQ3MezS
— CSPAN (@cspan) May 28, 2024
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Biden had threatened that the US would revoke arm transfers should Israel attack densely populated areas in Rafah.
CBS reporter Ed O’Keefe mocked Kirby, questioning why the area Israel hit was not considered “densely populated” by the White House.
CBS News' @edokeefe asks at White House press briefing about Israel's deadly explosion in Rafah: “The whole area is densely populated. How does this not violate the red line that the president laid out?”
John Kirby, WH National Security Council spokesperson: “As I said, we don’t… pic.twitter.com/prshMWC7yW
— CBS News (@CBSNews) May 28, 2024
Kirby said the deaths were “devastating” but that the magnitude of the strike was not enough to warrant a change in White House policy. “We don’t want to see a major ground operation,” Kirby told reporters. “We haven’t seen that.”
“We have not seen them go in with large units and large numbers of troops in columns and formations in some sort of coordinated maneuver against multiple targets on the ground,” Mr. Kirby said. “Everything that we can see tells us that they are not moving in in a major ground operation in population centers in the city of Rafah.”
Biden faces disapproval from members of his own party (and thus his own voters) to curb the government’s support of Israel. Vice President Kamala Harris said “the word tragic doesn’t even begin to describe” the attack.
On Wednesday, Israel’s military announced they took control of the strategic “Philadelphi” corridor on the border of Gaza and Egypt near Rafah. According to the Associated Press, the capture of the Philadelphi is evidence that Israel is ramping up its Rafah assault despite humanitarian calls for ceasefire.
Shane Devine is a writer covering politics and business for VT and a regular guest on The Unusual Suspects. Follow Shane’s work here.
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