Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Sunday on CBS’s “Face the Nation” that “Israel is not acting in accordance with international humanitarian law” during its war with Hamas.
MARGARET BRENNAN: There is deep concern about the Palestinian death toll, as even Prime Minister Netanyahu has acknowledged that the United States has actually killed more civilians than Hamas members. We begin this morning with Secretary of State Antony Blinken joining us from the State Department. Good morning, secretary. I know that military experts say that Gaza is the most complex and difficult battlefield of modern warfare. But in December, President Biden said Israel had carried out indiscriminate bombing. He said in February that Israel’s attacks had gone too far. And last week, he was asked on CNN about suspending the delivery of 3,500 bombs. This is what he said.
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President Joe Biden: Civilians are being killed in Gaza as a result of bombs and other attacks on populated areas. I’m not going to supply the weapons that have historically been used to deal with Rafah if they go into Rafah, I’m not going to supply them to deal with the city to deal with that problem. I made it clear.
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BRENNAN: Mr. Secretary, is Israel upholding the standards of international humanitarian law?
BLINKEN: Well, first of all, Margaret, good morning. And you know, we put out a full report on that. But let me say this from the beginning. From day one, President Biden has reinforced his determination to support Israel’s defense and ensure that October 7th never happens again. At the same time, he has made clear that this requires Israel to protect civilians and ensure that humanitarian aid reaches those in need. And that’s what we’ve been doing since day one. The report we have published highlights some of the concerns we have had regarding humanitarian assistance throughout this period, particularly in the early months after 7 October. And with regard to the use of weapons, in this case, given the totality of the harm inflicted on children, women and men, it is reasonable to assess that in some cases Israel acted in violation of international humanitarian law. Ta. It is also important to note that Israel itself has an accountability process to achieve this. Hundreds of investigations are ongoing into various incidents that occurred after October 7th. Unlike most other countries in the world, criminal investigations are ongoing and Israel has the ability, means, and actions to self-correct. But we’ve been working on this every day.
BRENNAN: So you can conclude that Israel violated U.S. law and arms-sharing agreements?
Blinken: No. In the case of weapons use, as you said, this is a very complex military environment, and we have come to the conclusion that there is an enemy, Hamas, who has committed the most brutal terrorist attacks against Israel. 7, and retreat into Gaza, hiding behind and beneath civilians in hospitals, schools, mosques, and apartment complexes. This makes it extremely difficult to accurately determine what happened and draw final conclusions from a single event, especially in the midst of a war. As such, there are a number of incidents that we continue to investigate in order to obtain the best possible assessment. Israelis themselves are doing the same. Our evaluation is ongoing. But, as I said, given the overall suffering of civilians, including children, women, and men who were killed or injured in the crossfire by Hamas. In many cases, it makes sense to evaluate it. Israel is not acting in accordance with international humanitarian law.
BRENNAN: So, I understand that you’re still gathering evidence, but could you please clarify what that policy is, because even the lead Democrat in the House of Representatives on military affairs says it’s not clear? Because it says so. Is the US currently delaying the delivery of more than 3,500 so-called dumb bombs to Israel?
Blinken: So let me be clear on this as well. First, let me take a step back and say that no president has done more to protect Israel when it really mattered than Joe Biden. He was in Israel a few days after October 7, becoming the first American president to visit Israel during the war. The United States participated in Israel’s active defense for the first time when Iran launched an unprecedented attack against Israel, launching 300 projectiles, including ballistic missiles. And we assembled a coalition of nations to defend against Iranian attack. However, we have been clear for months about our concerns about a large-scale military operation in Rafah. As you know, Margaret, most of Gaza’s population was evacuated from northern and central Gaza and relocated to Rafah. There are about 1.4 million people there. And we have told Israel that we cannot and will not support the operation in Rafah, a major military operation, without a credible plan to protect civilians.
