Unusual confrontation between US and Israel after Netanyahu publicly rejected future Palestinian state

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Friday he had warned the United States about its opposition to the establishment of a Palestinian state after the conflict in Gaza ends.

At a press conference, a defiant Netanyahu backed the Gaza offensive leading up to “complete victory”: the destruction of Hamas and the return of those abducted in the violent October 7 attacks.

“This may take several more months,” he said.

About 25,000 Palestinians were killed In the Strip, and with about 85% of the population displaced by the war, according to the Hamas-coordinated health ministry, Israel is under immense pressure to stop its offensive and begin negotiations to end the war.

Israel’s allies, including the US, and even many of its enemies are calling for reviving the idea of ​​a “two-state” solution, which proposes peaceful coexistence between a future Palestinian state and the State of Israel. .

The hope in many circles of power is that the current crisis may force both sides to sit at the negotiating table, which is perhaps the only viable option to stop the endless cycle of violence in the region.

But according to Netanyahu’s statements this Friday, His intentions are in completely opposite directions.

Following these statements, the US National Security Council spokesman, John Kirby, acknowledged that Israel “obviously” saw things differently.

On Tuesday, Netanyahu said Israel should maintain security control over land on the western bank of the Jordan River, which includes the territory of any future Palestinian state.

“This is a necessary condition and goes against the idea of ​​(Palestinian) sovereignty. What should be done? The Prime Minister said, “I am going to tell the truth to our American friends and stop trying to impose a reality on us that will seriously harm Israel’s security.”

Netanyahu has spent much of his political career opposing the idea of ​​a Palestinian state. In fact, last month he said he was proud to have prevented that from happening.

But Washington’s public rejection of diplomatic initiatives and, moreover, its determination to continue the military campaign demonstrate how the gap between Israel and its international allies is rapidly growing.

Since the Hamas attacks on Israeli territory on October 7 that killed 1,300 people and took about 240 hostages, the US has supported the idea of ​​Israel’s right to defend itself.

But as the death toll in Gaza has risen and scenes of horror have multiplied, Western governments have called on Israel to scale back its offensive.

The White House has tried to influence Israel’s military policy: it has urged the use of more precision weapons rather than aerial bombardment, advised against the use of ground strikes, and called for a two-state solution with an active role in Has continued to do. Palestinian Authority after the war in Gaza ends.

Kirby said the US has been “extremely clear” about its future plan for Gaza after the war.

He said, “We want a government in Gaza that is representative of the aspirations of the Palestinian people, that has a say in what they want for their territory and is not recaptured.”

During US Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s visits, Washington’s advice is often ignored or often publicly rejected.

In turn, frustration has grown in some circles in Washington over the Biden administration’s apparent full-throated support for Israel, with tough calls to impose conditions on US aid to its Middle East ally.

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