Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said his country would be “isolated” if necessary in a war with Hamas, threatening to deepen the crisis in relations with the United States.
Prime Minister Netanyahu made the remarks after President Joe Biden said the United States would not provide offensive weapons in response to Israel's attack on the southern Gaza city of Rafah, as promised for years.
Israel claims Rafah is Hamas' last stronghold in Gaza, and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has invaded the city despite widespread opposition from the international community out of concern for the more than 1 million Palestinian civilians clustered in the city. I have repeatedly vowed to do so.
“If we have to be isolated, we will be isolated,” he said. “We will fight with our claws if we have to. But we have more than our claws.”
Joe Biden says the United States will not provide offensive weapons for Israel's long-promised attack on the southern Gaza city of Rafah (AP)
The threat of losing a vital flow of arms has raised questions about Israel's ability to continue the war.
Earlier this week, they moved into the eastern suburbs of Rafah and took control of a key border crossing.
Asked if Israel could proceed without American weapons, military spokesman Maj. Gen. Daniel Hagari said Israel already had the weapons needed for Operation Rafah.
“The military has ammunition for the missions they are planning and they have ammunition for the mission in Rafah. We have what we need,” he said.
He said relations with the United States remained close, that Israel was grateful for American support, and that differences should be resolved behind closed doors.
A crane loads food aid onto a ship in Cyprus (Petros Karagias/Associated Press)
On Thursday, an ambulance boat set sail for a U.S.-built floating pier in Gaza. But it is unclear when the corridor will be completed and operational, and humanitarian groups say major obstacles remain to getting food to starving Palestinians in the war-torn enclave.
Cyprus announced the ship's departure even though the U.S. military has not yet set up a pier and questions remain about how aid will be distributed.
Even if this route were up and running, it would not be able to handle as much aid as Gaza's two main land routes, which are currently inaccessible.
The United Nations said most of the Gaza Strip's 2.3 million Palestinians were suffering from hunger, and northern Gaza was already in “full-scale famine.”
Humanitarian workers fear the situation could become even more dire if Israel launches its long-promised invasion of the southern city of Rafah. Rafah is a major aid hub and is home to around 1.3 million Palestinians, most of whom have fled fighting elsewhere.
Israeli soldiers work on armored military vehicles at a military post near the Israel-Gaza border in southern Israel. (Tsafrir Abayov/The Associated Press)
Israel has reopened its side of Gaza near the Kerem Shalom crossing, the main cargo terminal, after last weekend's rocket attack, but the United Nations' main humanitarian aid provider says it is unable to bring aid to the Palestinian side due to the security situation. It says it can't be done.
The recently reopened northern route is still operational, but only 60 trucks entered Gaza on Tuesday, far fewer than the 500 that entered Gaza daily before the war.
International aid groups warned this week that distribution networks were at risk of collapsing across the territory due to the closure of the Rafah River, which was used for fuel imports. The U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees said it had only enough stock to sustain operations for several days and had begun rationing.
Logistics has also been disrupted by the threat of a full-scale invasion of Rafah, where many aid organizations have warehouses and staff.
Biden said Wednesday that the United States would not supply offensive weapons for a full-scale invasion, following a recent escalation in tensions between the two countries' close allies.
Earlier, Israel's far-right Minister of National Security Itamar Ben Gvir posted a post on Platform X with a heart symbol between the words “Hamas” and “Biden.” He and other ultranationalists in Netanyahu's coalition support a major Rafah operation and have threatened to overthrow the government if it does not materialize.
People stand in front of a truck carrying humanitarian aid near the Kerem Shalom border crossing, trying to block it from entering the Gaza Strip. (Leo Correa/Associated Press)
CIA Director William Burns returned to the United States as scheduled on Thursday after attending a meeting in Cairo this week and speaking with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, a US official said.
Hamas also said its delegation had left Cairo and was returning to Qatar, where it has political offices.
Egypt's state-run Al-Qahera TV said negotiations in Cairo were continuing. It did not say whether an Israeli delegation was still there, and there was no comment from the Israeli government.
The war began with a surprise attack by Hamas on southern Israel, in which approximately 1,200 people, mostly civilians, were killed and another 250 were taken hostage. The militants still hold about 100 prisoners and more than 30 bodies after most of the rest were released during last year's ceasefire.
According to the Gaza Ministry of Health, the war has killed more than 34,800 Palestinians, most of them women and children.
The Israeli offensive, carried out using munitions supplied by the United States, caused widespread devastation and forced approximately 80% of the Gaza Strip's population to flee their homes.
Biden announced the construction of the floating pier two months ago as part of efforts to ramp up humanitarian assistance to Gaza.
Pentagon spokesman Maj. Pete Nguyen said Thursday that part of the pier is still in the Israeli port of Ashdod, awaiting more favorable waters before being relocated off the coast of Gaza. He said the US ship Sagamore, which left Cyprus, would transport aid to another ship off the coast of Gaza.
“In the coming days, the United States will begin an effort with the support of the international community to expand the delivery of humanitarian assistance to Gaza residents using the floating pier,” he said.