America… broad movement and few achievements regarding the war on Gaza | News

With the passage of a month since the Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip GazaThe achievements of American diplomacy appear to be minimal, which both supporters and opponents of the war agree is deliberate, if only in part.

US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, who is completing an extensive tour of the crisis, insisted that all the leaders he spoke to demanded an “American leadership role.”

Blinken told reporters in the Turkish capital, Ankara, yesterday, Monday, that “every country I spoke with looks forward to us playing a leadership role through our diplomacy to try to achieve progress in the various aspects of this crisis.”

But the United States did not support the position of the leaders of the Arab countries and many other countries who called for a ceasefire, and continued to emphasize, since the beginning of the war, Israel’s right to defend itself.

Although the war has entered its second month, and the violent Israeli bombing and massacres committed by the occupation army in the Gaza Strip continue, America’s position has not witnessed any significant change, with the exception of Blinken’s call during his recent tour for “humanitarian truces” to allow aid to enter the Strip, on which the Israeli occupation imposes a stifling siege. 32 days ago.

However, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu did not support Blinken’s idea, while the White House reported that President Joe Biden again raised the issue of making room for “tactical truces” during a phone call with Netanyahu yesterday, Monday.

Despite this large number of civilian casualties and the catastrophic humanitarian situation in Gaza, the most prominent goals of the US Secretary of State during his diplomatic tour in the region were to prevent the expansion of the war and prevent the opening of other fronts, especially with Hizb allah In Lebanon.

Some American officials spoke of achieving some progress in alleviating the suffering of the people of Gaza, through efforts to persuade Israel to partially restore the water and electricity services that they had cut off from the Strip since the beginning of the war, and to allow more humanitarian aid to enter through Rafah crossing.

Although American officials avoided announcing any significant progress in their efforts to prevent the expansion of the war, some observers considered that the Secretary-General’s speech For Hezbollah Hassan Nasrallah indicated last Friday that the party does not intend to resort to further escalation with Israel.

Deterrence and public opinion

According to veteran American diplomat James Jeffrey, who led counter-efforts Islamic State organization During the era of former President Donald Trump, Blinken began his tour with two tasks: first, to prevent escalation by forces loyal to Iran, and second, to calm public opinion.

Jeffrey, who currently directs the Middle East Program at the Wilson Center, expressed his belief that Blinken achieved his goal during his diplomatic tour in the region.

He pointed out that the violent Israeli response in Gaza in itself constituted a deterrent to Hezbollah and Iran, sending a message saying, “We will do the same and more toward you” if an escalation occurs.

But he pointed out that Israel’s war tactics complicated the second American goal of dealing with public opinion, noting that Blinken “is trying to push the Israelis to make room for other matters to be in the news.”

Jeffrey said that Blinken wanted “to help the Arab countries with regard to their populations, and frankly to help Biden internally, by emphasizing that the United States is committed to avoiding civilian casualties, as well as playing a leadership role with regard to humanitarian aid to the residents of Gaza.”

But the veteran American diplomat confirms that the issue of dealing with public opinion is difficult, “because frankly the Israelis are not helping in this regard as much as they should.”

Reducing the gap

The American position sparked some ridicule, as the former legal advisor to the Palestinian negotiators with Israel, Diana Buttu, mocked Blinken’s failure to even reach humanitarian truces, despite the extent of Israel’s dependence on Washington.

In reference to the meagerness of what Blinken’s tour achieved, Buttu said, “If Blinken travels on commercial flights, he earns a lot of miles and that’s about it.”

She saw that Blinken “is playing a game based on trying to please the Arab countries and the rest of the world, while giving the green light to Israel at the same time” to continue its war on Gaza.

She also considered that reducing the American role, despite the billions of dollars that Washington spends on Israel, is difficult to believe.

Director of the Middle East Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, John Alterman, stated that the United States has always faced criticism from Arab countries because of its support for Israel, something that American officials believe cannot be changed.

Alterman concluded that the Israeli war on the Islamic Resistance Movement (agitation) Israel is becoming “more and more distant from its neighbors and from most of the world, while the United States is trying hard to reduce that gap” through its diplomatic efforts.