(NewsNation) — The White House has said little about the latest Israeli strike the IDF says killed two terrorist leaders but also at least 45 innocent Palestinian civilians, half of whom were women and children.
The administration may have more to say at a White House news briefing Tuesday afternoon.
Meanwhile, the National Security Council issued the following statement:
“The devastating images following an IDF strike in Rafah last night that killed dozens of innocent Palestinians are heartbreaking. Israel has a right to go after Hamas, and we understand this strike killed two senior Hamas terrorists who are responsible for attacks against Israeli civilians. But as we’ve been clear, Israel must take every precaution possible to protect civilians.”
Americans are waiting to see whether the Biden administration will take a tone more defensive of Israel or whether it will condemn the strike in a forceful, serious way. Many of America’s top allies have already done so.
French President Emmanuel Macron says he’s outraged by the strike, saying there are no safe areas for civilians in Rafah and calling for an immediate cease-fire.
The United States’ German allies had been hesitant to criticize Israel, but that has changed.
Germany’s Vice Chancellor Robert Habeck says Israel’s actions are incompatible with international law.
That undoubtedly puts more pressure on Biden to do the same. The president has maintained that the policy from the administration is to withhold large bombs.
Because Israel decided to go into Rafah, he followed through on that.
In the meantime, the Israeli military acknowledged Tuesday the civilian deaths were, in there their words, “a tragedy.”
Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu’s spokeswoman, Tal Heinrich, said the killing of innocent people in Rafah was “a mistake” but that the strike itself was not.
“We do not target civilians. We don’t want to see any civilian suffering and any civilian casualties in Gaza,” Heinrich said. “We only target terrorists and terror infrastructure. That strike you’re referring to, as we said in the briefing, was an intelligence-based one. It was against terror targets who have blood on their hands.”
Heinrich says the area hit wasn’t the civilian zone within Rafah where Palestinian civilians were told to go.
But local officials in Rafah argue that as long as Israel is in Rafah, there’s no place that’s safe for Palestinian families.
Each day the conflict drags on, it continues to be one of, if not the most, difficult policy and political challenges as the election draws near.
