The Gaza Emergency Medical Response: U.S. Response to Hamas’s Oct. 7 Attack on Israel, Israel, and the Palestinian Authority
It’s not certain how the aid will be distributed even if the Rafah crossing is opened, because reports of Israel bombing the region damage many of the roads.
Biden’s team has been pressing Israel and Egypt to allow food, water and medicine into Gaza — and to let civilians out. Kirby was on the way to Tel Aviv and he expressed his optimism.
Finally, among the estimated 200 hostages taken by Hamas during its Oct. 7 attacks on Israel, as many as 13 are believed to be U.S. citizens. A White House readout of discussions between Biden and Netanyahu said the two “discussed ongoing efforts to secure the release of hostages taken by Hamas – including Americans.”
In Israel, Biden sought to make U.S. support crystal-clear — but also to warn Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that a proportional response to the Hamas attacks means protecting the lives of innocent Palestinians.
He’ll be asking some tough questions, but he’ll be asking some questions of Israel as well,” Kirby said on the eve of Biden’s visit.
“I am outraged and deeply saddened by the explosion at the Al Ahli Arab hospital in Gaza, and the terrible loss of life that resulted,” Biden said in a statement. “The United States stands unequivocally for the protection of civilian life during conflict and we mourn the patients, medical staff and other innocents killed or wounded in this tragedy.”
Biden talked to Netanyahu after the hospital explosion. John Kirby said that Israel had denied responsibility.
Biden was scheduled to stop in Amman, Jordan for talks with several people, including the King of Jordan, Egypt’s El-Sissi and the Palestinian Authority President. The Arab leaders called off the meeting following the hospital explosion.
Hamas described the strike on the hospital as a massacre that “also exposes the American and Western support for this criminal occupation.” Hamas called for Muslims and Arabs to protest against Israel.
The Israeli Embassy in the Gaza Strip after a Palestinian Hospital Violation Indicated by the President’s Visitations to the Middle East and the West Bank
Jordan’s King Abdullah, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el Sisi, and Palestinian Authority President Mahmud Abbas were all scheduled to meet with Biden in Amman.
But a planned meeting between Biden and regional leaders fell apart after a catastrophic explosion at a hospital in Gaza killed hundreds of Palestinians just hours before the president landed in Israel.
But Biden has visited war zones before, including a trip to Ukraine in February. The travel was kept under wraps until the president arrived in Kyiv.
Due to the risk of travel to the region, the White House is providing less public information about the trip. The Secretary was moved to a Bunker for about five minutes when the sirens went off as a warning of new rocket attacks in Tel Aviv.
Protests had already erupted after the hospital strike in Egypt, Jordan, Iraq and Lebanon, to name a few. Protests broke out in the West Bank with police attempting to break up the crowds chanting slogans against Israel and the PA.
Israeli army spokesman Daniel Hagari told reporters late Tuesday evening that it was a mistake, based on footage from Israeli drones and chatter from militants calling the rocket a missle.
He said that Israel has obtained live footage from Al-Jazeera, as well as other sources, but they do not see a direct hit at the hospital.
He said that before the Baptist Al-Ahli hospital was hit, Israel had shelled the hospital twice, causing some damage. He said this was followed by a warning from Israel asking why the hospital had not yet been evacuated.
Israelis and Palestinians: The ongoing crisis in the Middle East, and what they can tell us about the situation in Gaza, as seen by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and Environment
The White House said the president looks “forward to consulting in person with these leaders soon, and agreed to remain regularly and directly engaged with each of them over the coming days.”
U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for an immediate humanitarian cease-fire. He said too many lives and the fate of the entire region hang in the balance.
Saudi Arabia slammed Israel in a strongly worded statement, saying it had denounced the heinous crime committed by the Israelis.
Hamas is launching missiles at Israel cities. Israel’s Iron Dome defense system is the most effective. Air raid sirens are heard a lot in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv.
The Baptist Al-Ahli hospital treated people from the bombardment of the Gaza Strip and was also housing families who had nowhere else to go.
Since then, Israeli air and naval strikes on Gaza have killed at least 3,000 people, a third of them children, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry. That death toll was before the hospital strike. Another 1,200 people are missing, presumed dead or still alive under the rubble of thousands of homes that have been destroyed.
A senior Health Ministry official in Gaza, Dr. Yousef Abu Al-Reesh, gave a press conference after the hospital strike. He stood in front of the dead bodies of children.
Dr. Fadel Naim, a doctor at the Baptist Al-Ahli hospital, told NPR that doctors were operating on patients when they heard a loud explosion. He ran outside and saw dead and wounded everywhere.
He said that there was an explosion at the hospital and one baby was found on the roof. “Many babies died yesterday. Many babies.”
The Up First podcast: Jordan’s nominated challenge to the next congressman. Rep. Sameh Shoukry meets CNN in a Gazan airstrike
Egypt’s Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry told CNN in an interview Israel has bombed the crossing several times in recent days, including as Egyptian workers were repairing damage from one of the airstrikes, wounding several of them.
A U.N. shelter where thousands of Palestinians were seeking refuge was also struck by Israel on Tuesday, killing six people, according to the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees.
The World Health Organization delivered fuel to the big hospital in Gaza, but it’s only a few more days of fuel since there’s no more electricity in the area.
The UN says that only about 14% of Gaza’s population receives water from Israel, even though Israel partially restored it this week.
The U.N. relief agency said that people have been consuming brackish water from agricultural wells and are exposing the population to pesticides and other chemicals, placing them at risk of death or disease outbreak.
Good morning. You are reading a newsletter. Subscribe here to get it delivered to your inbox, and listen to the Up First podcast for all the news you need to start your day.
Jim Jordan, the new speaker, was again rejected by House Republicans. The opposition to his nomination increased from 20 GOPs to 22.
The Last Drive Towards Preventing Catalytic Converter Theft: A New Federal Reserve Study of Autonomous Vehicles in Aruba
According to a new Federal Reserve survey, the average American family’s net worth has gone up by over 40% in the last two years. The agency has seen a jump since the surveys began. The wealth gap between rich and poor also narrowed slightly. The gains could be tied to the government’s temporary COVID relief measures.
Natalee Holloway’s family finally knows what happened to her 18 years after the American teen disappeared on a high school graduation trip in Aruba. Joran van der Sloot was found guilty of her death. He agreed to tell Beth how her daughter died and where she was buried as part of the plea deal.
The National Insurance Crime Bureau says that catalytic trailer theft has increased by leaps and bounds. They help the people clean exhaust. Thieves target them because they’re made of expensive precious metals. Replacing one can cost thousands of dollars. This is how to protect your car.
Source: Up First briefing: Gaza aid deal; preventing catalytic converter theft
Associated Asteroseismology: Celebrating the Birth of Democracy in Israel, with an Activist Contribution from a Star Trekkie
When she was a child, an escape was using TV as an escape. Star Trek: The Next Generation was one of her favorite shows. Her dad, also a Trekkie, pointed out the morals in each episode and taught her to value diversity. Barber writes about how this helped build the foundation for her sense of social justice as an astrophysicist of color.
What are you interested in? If you leave a voice note at 800-336-4273, your submission may be featured online or on the radio.
In the wake of a visit by President Biden, Israelis praised his bravery in coming at a time of war and for his full-throated support as he vowed that we would not let you ever be alone after attacks from Hamas killed at least 1,400 Israelis.
The Americans were brought into the decision making process of the security cabinet and emergency cabinet by Mr. Netanyahu. That means that Biden will be held responsible if Israel does something to Gaza. That obliges him and obliges us.”
This degree of consultation is rare, if not unprecedented, even in a relationship this close, Israeli analysts said. If it has potential benefits for Mr. Netanyahu, it also carries risks. It might give him cover for an extended war, but it may also limit how he conducts it.
Satellite images showed hundreds of tanks and armored vehicles north of Gaza as Israel prepared to send tens of thousands of soldiers into the enclave.
What is the Cost of Being the 51st State? The Case of Israel: Israel’s War with Israel, Hamas, Gaza’s Health Ministry
In Yedioth Ahronoth, Nadav Eyal wrote about how the late Sharon used to tell himself that he would defend himself by himself. These are not values that Netanyahu has been projecting. He seems to yearn to be the United States’ 51st state. This comes with a price, symbolic as well as practical.”
The Oval Office backdrop is indicative of the seriousness with which Biden views these national security matters. He spoke from the Resolute desk once before, in June, after the debt ceiling crisis was averted.
Biden said his administration was in touch with the leadership from the start of the attack to make sure that they had what they needed to protect their people.
The White House faces two hurdles on Ukraine aid: waning public support — primarily among Republicans — and a still-unfilled role of speaker of the House. Without a speaker, it’s unlikely the Republican-controlled lower chamber can pass spending bills.
“We’re the United States of America for God’s sake, the most powerful nation in the history — not in the world, in the history of the world,” he said in a recent interview with CBS’ 60 Minutes.
“This is … almost the equivalent of trips to American disaster areas,” says Thomas Schwartz, a historian at Vanderbilt University. He said it was symbolic and meant to show how much Israel is part of the American political system.
Analysts say it’s important for the administration to know whatever comes next, including more deadly Israeli strikes in Gaza, targeting Hamas, and the possibility of a bloody ground campaign which could cause more bloodshed among Israel’s Arab neighbors. So far, more than 3,400 Palestinians have been killed, according to Gaza’s health ministry.
U.S. Warfare in the Middle East: Israel, Ukraine, and Hamas, Israel’s Bittes and Calls for Action
Biden will deliver a prime-time televised speech at 8 p.m. Eastern time Thursday from the Oval Office, where he’s expected to outline the gravity of the situation in the Middle East and make a direct appeal to the public for continued aid to both Israel and Ukraine.
The trip served to reassure Israel that Biden “prioritizes the need for the U.S. to actually engage in this question, rather than step back from it,” says Brian Katulis, vice president of policy at the Middle East Institute.
That message of engagement was not only directed at Israel, but also to the rest of the Middle East — particularly Iran and the Lebanon-based Hezbollah militia it backs, Katulis says.
Biden’s visit reinforced his earlier warnings, in addition to the hard-power signals sent by U.S. deployment of carrier task groups to the eastern Mediterranean.
Rabinovich says that the main threat right now is the possibility of Iran and their proxy in Lebanon joining in.
He says the Biden administration contributed to keeping the status quo by warning Iran and Hezbollah.
The cancellation of the Amman meeting does not mean the door is shut between the US and key Arab countries.
“Justice must be done,” the president said in Israel. “But I caution this: While you feel that rage, don’t be consumed by it. After 9/11 we were enraged in the United States. While we sought justice and got justice, we also made mistakes.”
“There’s genuine concern among U.S. officials about civilian casualties and how that can negatively impact the mission itself and achieving the desired goals that Israel has stated.”
National Security Council spokesman John Kirby has said the U.S. is “actively trying to find out exactly where” the American hostages are located and is doing its utmost to gain their release. Hamas has also hinted that it might be open to releasing non-Israelis.