Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu doubled down on Thursday on the importance of a military campaign in Rafah, one day after Defense Minister Yoav Gallant took him to task for failing to have a day-after plan, and warning of the consequences.
“The battle in Rafah is critical,” Netanyahu said, as he visited soldiers in the Bnei Netzarim military base, and focused on the importance of the IDF destroying the last remaining four Hamas battalions in the terror group’s last stronghold in Gaza.
“It is not only the remaining battalions there but their escape and supply pipelines. This battle, of which you are an integral part, is a battle that will decide many things in this campaign,” Netanyahu told the soldiers.
Netanyahu has faced criticism, both domestic and international, for his push to enter Rafah, with White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre stating on Thursday that the Biden administration has been clear in its opposition to “a potential major military operation and Rafah.”
But, she noted that Israel assured the White House that its military activity in Rafah was limited and targeted.
She stressed that while the US supported Israel’s stance that Hamas could not remain in Gaza, she appeared to back Gallant in his position, in stating that the White House has “underscored the importance of having a clear and concrete plan for the day after the conflict in Gaza.”
Arab league voices opposition to war at Manama
In Manama, Bahrain, the Arab League met on Thursday to voice its opposition not just to the Rafah operation, but to the war itself, and to call for an immediate ceasefire and the full withdrawal of Israeli forces from the enclave. It stressed the need for a two-state resolution to the conflict, one based on the pre-1967 lines.
It also called for “the deployment of United Nations international protection and peacekeeping forces in the occupied Palestinian territory until the two-state solution is implemented.”
US Deputy State Department spokesperson Vedant Patel said that the focus has been on ending the conflict. The US, he said, has been focused on talks with Arab partners about playing a constructive role in Gaza when conditions allow.
Additional security forces “could compliment” Israeli military efforts in Gaza, he stressed.
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