Politico writes that according to four US officials with knowledge of internal administration thinking, US President Joe Biden will consider the possibility of restricting arms shipments to Israel if the IDF launches a large-scale invasion of Rafah.
Biden's move underscores the extreme strains in his relationship with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has rejected subtler efforts by the Biden administration to influence military actions. The American leader has previously not ruled out the possibility of limiting military aid.
In a recent interview, the president stated that mass civilian casualties in Gaza would be a "red line" for him, emphasizing that the US would not tolerate the deaths of another 30,000 Palestinians.
National Security Council spokesperson Adrienne Watson told Politico that she is not "going to comment on speculation by anonymous sources or add to what the president said this weekend."
White House deputy press secretary Olivia Dalton stated that the administration is exploring other, more effective approaches. "The president has been quite forthright," she said, describing the "red line" statement as somewhat ill-advised.
Shanna Kirschner, a professor of Middle Eastern politics at Allegheny College, noted that both Democratic and Republican administrations conditioned aid to Israel over policy disagreements in the past.
However, relations between Biden and Netanyahu continue to deteriorate, and the disagreements between them, which the administration initially did not publicly express, have begun to surface. Despite intense American pressure, the Israeli leader insists that the operation in Rafah will proceed.
Reports indicate that relations between the leaders were not good from the beginning, as Biden criticized the Israeli government's plans for judicial reform. Since October 7, the administration has been preparing for what will come after Netanyahu leaves office, assuming that he won't remain in power in light of the failures.
