As the Gaza War continues with thousands dying or becoming amputated, the rest of the world has not remained silent. In Washington DC, the United States thousands of Pro-Palestinian protestors converged around the White House on Saturday, urging President Joe Biden to stop all military aid to Israel and calling for an immediate cease-fire in Israel’s war in Gaza.
Holding signs calling Mr. Biden a liar, the protestors, mostly clad in red and bearing Palestinian flags, marched around the block of parkland where the White House sits. They spilled across two six-lane boulevards, pushing out tourists, whose faces showed variations of confusion, anger or intrigue. The police presence was heavy, and the U.S. Park Police used pepper spray against a protestor at least once. Mr. Biden was not at the White House but in France, where he joined President Emanuel Macron for a state dinner in Paris on Saturday night. But the dissenting voices in the American capital highlighted the challenges he faces domestically as he tries to carve out a narrow position that both supports Israel’s right to defend itself against Hamas and calls for a quick cessation of hostilities.(The New York Times)
Biden is caught in a complex quagmire. This is not helped by the continuous pressure by the American Israeli Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) also known as the Israeli Lobby to keep the weapons supply open. Both the Zionist regime and Hamas have been relentless in their attacks against each other. But it is getting either side nowhere in their fighting. It would be best if Biden cancels the shipment of weapons to Israel. This is the only deterrence that could put pressure on Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu to end the air raids and sue for terms. Biden however is also facing mounting pressure at home to stop supplying Israel with weapons or facing losing the next US presidential election to his opponent former president and Republican candidate Donald Trump.
Trump is a supporter and loyal friend of Netanyahu.
The pro-Palestinian activists outside the White House, who were highly critical of the Biden administration’s response to the war, encouraged a key portion of Mr. Biden’s base – young and nonewhite voters – to reconsider their support for the president ahead of the election this fall. “There is no world in which I can confidently vote for” Mr. Biden, said Nas Issa, a spokeswoman for the Palestinian Youth Movement, one of the left-leaning groups that organized Saturday’s protest. If Mr. Biden “doesn’t change course and hold Netanyahu and the Israeli government at large to account, under what circumstances would it be acceptable to any person of conscience to vote for him?” she added referring to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel.(The New York Times)
The idea that Biden could lose this presidential election means more trouble than good news. If Trump wins the election, it won’t make a difference to the Palestinian cause, thousands of men, woman and children will die and thousands more will die. Trump will always be a steadfast friend of Netanyahu, whereas Biden is more hesitant and impervious to the situation. It appears that there will be no appropriate candidate who can take the helm of the White House in 2024. Biden for his part is losing his support base in the campaign to become US president for a second term. Trump of course still remains a popular favourite amongst right-wing republicans to win the presidency. But it is up to the voters whom they want although it will unfortunately affect the outcome of the Gaza Conflict.
Diplomats, policymakers and politicians are focusing on what happens “the day after” the fighting happens stops in Gaza.
Given the intensity of the conflict and the absence of hope, such thinking might seem surprising, even wishful. Yet there is an increasing focus on what could and should happen if and when the guns fall silent in Gaza. EU foreign ministers will discuss this in Brussels on Monday when they hold talks with counterparts from Jordan, Egypt, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE, along with the secretary-general of the Arab League. Across the Middle East and among western countries, conversations are taking place and plans are being drawn up. Many are aware the opportunity before the US election in November is closing. Despite all this, however, there seems little agreement about what should happen and when.(BBC)
As negotiations continue, the bloodshed shows no sign of abating. Netanyahu doesn’t want a ceasefire and Biden needs to step up his game and end the supply of weapons to Gaza. There needs to be an arrangement on all sides, the Arab parties, Washington, the Israelis, the other western powers, the Palestinian Authority and even Hamas about what Gaza’s future should be. A cease fire will still mean nothing with out an end to the flow of weapons from the US and the European nations. Both Washington and Brussels need to keep this in mind. The war itself cannot continue and an occupation of Gaza by the Israeli Defence Force will lead to bitter mistrust on the part of Gaza residents.
It is all a matter of time to determine how this madness ends and what comes next.
Article written by:
Yacoob Cassim
Journalist at Radio Al Ansaar
