(IntegrityTimes.com) – President Joe Biden has, for the time being, stopped foreign aid that was to be sent to Israel.
The move follows Pro-Palestine protests at university campuses across the US and pressure from both students and more left-leaning Democrats to work towards a ceasefire in Gaza. According to the Gallup Organization’s polls, the difference in views on Gaza between Republican and Democrat videos is more pronounced than ever; Republicans side with the Israeli regime over Palestine at a rate more than double the amount of Democrat voters who support Israel’s government. Democratic Minnesota Representative Ilhan Omar has accused the president of supporting massacres in Palestine, and demanded the Biden administration do more to secure a ceasefire.
Biden has previously condemned Israel’s planned assault on Gaza’s southern city of Rafah unless a valid safety plan is in place. Though Rafah is reported to be the final stronghold of Hamas, the city houses thousands of Palestinian refugees. The U.K. also expressed “deep concern” about the planned offensive and has been considering since February 2024 potentially halting provision of arms to Tel Aviv if the attack goes ahead. In May Prime Minister Rishi Sunak reiterated these deep concerns.
On May 6 Biden commemorated Holocaust Remembrance Day by stressing the “Never Again” message about genocide, which left-wing supporters of Palestine are accusing the Israeli regime of committing in its assaults on Palestinian territory. Over 34,000 people since October 2023 in Gaza. Israel’s Settlements and National Projects Minister Orit Strock commented in May that the U.S. “does not deserve” to be considered a “friend” of Israel. Strock criticized the U.S. for pushing for an end to the war on behalf of Tel Aviv.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has promised to go ahead with the planned assault on Rafah regardless of ceasefire negotiations, which Netanyahu’s office has already stated are not in Israel’s best interests. In April, before military aid was halted, the White House had decided that military aid to controversial IDF units can continue, after considering sanctioning them over alleged war crimes committed in Gaza before and after the October 7 attacks. Democratic Missouri Representative Cori Bush sided with Omar in pressing Biden for a ceasefire, branding Netanyahu’s regime as “extremist” and “far right”.
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