President Joe Biden is scheduled to have a conversation with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday, following Israel’s military announcement of a partial evacuation in the southern Gaza city of Rafah.
Israeli leaders have expressed their commitment to conducting ground operations in Rafah to complete their Gaza sweep and defeat Hamas. However, global leaders have cautioned that not considering the over 1 million Palestinians seeking refuge in the area could lead to severe civilian casualties.
The Israel Defense Forces instructed Palestinians in certain east Rafah neighborhoods to evacuate promptly. These individuals are supposed to relocate to an encampment in the Mawasi area near Khan Younis, which will provide essential facilities such as field hospitals, tents, food, water, medicine, and other supplies.
The United States has been urging Israel to reconsider a ground invasion of Rafah for several weeks. Despite efforts by U.S., Qatari, and Egyptian officials to broker a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas, these negotiations have not been successful.
The ongoing conflict has already claimed over 30,000 Palestinian lives, including civilians and combatants, according to the Gaza health ministry controlled by Hamas. Israel’s military actions were in response to a terrorist attack by Hamas on October 7 that resulted in approximately 1,200 fatalities and the abduction of around 250 individuals, with approximately half still being held in Gaza.
The Biden administration, while expressing concerns about civilian casualties and the humanitarian situation, has generally supported Israel since October 7. President Biden insisted that Israel allow more humanitarian aid to enter Gaza and threatened to link future aid to compliance with these requirements following an Israeli airstrike that killed seven aid workers.
According to reports, the U.S. paused a shipment of ammunition destined for Israel last week, marking the first time since the October 7 attack that such a shipment was halted.
