Israel to be pressured to achieve operational transition milestones
“Biden wants to switch to correct tactics within 3 weeks.”
As public opinion for a cease-fire grows stronger within Israel after the Israeli military killed its own civilian hostage, U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin plans to visit Israel to pressure the country to change its operations.
On the 17th (local time), CNN reported, citing a senior U.S. Department of Defense official, that Secretary Austin plans to meet with Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and receive specific updates on the assessment of the current progress in the operation to dismantle Hamas military facilities.
The official explained that Secretary Austin will press Israel on what indicators it is reviewing to transition its operations in the Gaza Strip to the next stage, and will work to increase humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip and reduce civilian casualties.
In particular, we plan to press how the various stages of the Gaza operation will be carried out and how specific operational milestones will be determined.
“I think the (Israeli) security establishment is assessing this situation and progress on it every hour,” the official said. “Secretary Austin will want to hear a very clear explanation of their own assessment.”
In particular, he emphasized that he will check whether Israel is proceeding with related discussions or plans to transition to a phase of stopping the ground war.
Previously, during a visit to Tel Aviv, Israel on the 15th, U.S. White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan recommended a shift to a new phase of the war that would focus on “more precise methods” targeting Hamas leadership.
According to the New York Times (NYT), although Sullivan did not directly specify a time for Israel to switch operations, the U.S. conveyed to Israel that President Joe Biden wants to switch to more accurate tactics within three weeks.
Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen, a member of the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee, also appeared on ABC’s ‘This Week’ on the same day and said, “There is a high level of civilian deaths that we cannot tolerate,” and said that the US is calling for a reduction in civilian casualties. He criticized that the message was not being conveyed clearly enough to Israel.
Secretary Austin is scheduled to arrive in Israel on the 18th. This is his second visit to Israel since the war in the Gaza Strip broke out on October 7.
He is also scheduled to visit Bahrain and Qatar during this trip, and according to the British Guardian, he is expected to announce plans to launch a multinational maritime protection force to block attacks on the Red Sea by Yemen’s Houthi rebels, supported by Iran, during his visit to Bahrain.
Source: Donga
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.