President Joe Biden calls the war between Israel and Hamas “the issue that’s front and center in the Middle East and … beyond.” The United States continues to work tirelessly to achieve an agreement that would not only allow for the release of the hostages held by Hamas in Gaza, but would allow a pause that would enable delivery of humanitarian assistance to alleviate the suffering of Palestinians on the ground.
“We’re looking for a temporary pause as part of a hostage deal,” said National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, “and then to build on that into something more enduring.”
“What we would like to see…is that Hamas is ultimately defeated, that peace and security come to Gaza and to Israel, and that we then work towards the longer-term issues related to a two-state solution with Israel’s security guaranteed,” he said.
State Department Spokesperson Matthew Miller underscored U.S. support for “Israel’s right to ensure that the October 7th attacks cannot be repeated:”
“We know that Hamas wants to continue to target Israel. Hamas has been very clear about what their goals are, and they have not changed since October 7th. They want to continue to launch terrorist attacks. They are committed to the full-scale destruction of Israel, and we want to see Israel to be able to answer that.”
Spokesperson Miller emphasized “the obvious tension in trying to ensure that Israel can accomplish that first objective while doing everything in its power to ensure that civilian harm is minimized … Those are the two things we believe in,” he said.
In remarks after his recent meeting with King Abdullah of Jordan, President Biden deplored the deaths of the over 27,000 Palestinians that have been killed in this conflict. “Every innocent life lost in Gaza is a tragedy,” he said.
That is the reason, said Spokesperson Miller, the United States engages with Israel offering “ideas and expertise and ways to minimize civilian harm.”
“We have seen civilian deaths come down from the levels they were. They are nowhere near where they should be. They are still far too high. There are still far too many Palestinians that continue to die,” he said.
Spokesperson Miller said, “It’s why we continue to engage to try to achieve a humanitarian pause and why we continue to work to try to bring a durable end to this conflict.”
