TEHRAN — Joe Biden sells Israel $735 million worth of precision guided missiles, yet he puts on the face a broker who mediated a ceasefire. Will there be another forged Nobel Peace Prize on the way?

Biden named his foreign policy plan “reset.” Though he didn’t specify a reset to what. 

The administration kicked off January with Biden not answering Bibi Netanyahu’s phone call and not trying to converse with him for more than a week, a move widely considered unexpected, perhaps quite rare in the history of American presidency. He then moved to a low-key approach towards the Israel-Palestine issue, shifting towards Iran to re-enter the 2015 nuclear deal, and mending partnership with China.

The Gaza war, however, turned Biden’s attention to West Asia again. Once he said he has lobbied for AIPAC more than anyone in the Senate. Biden’s historically iron-clad support for Israel is no longer legitimate to the progressive Democratic Party members such as Rashida Tlaib and Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez. They are calling for a more equal approach to recognize the Palestinians’ rights. 

What Biden and Netanyahu failed to understand is that their strike on Gaza united the whole world against them. Even the Palestinians who live in the 1948 lands held demonstrations against the attacks. The public opinion pressured France to put forward a draft UNSC resolution; yet, in an idiotic move, the Biden administration threatened to block the resolution.

Even Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Robert Menendez, D-N.J., a longtime admirer of Israel, issued a statement this weekend condemning the Israeli military strike on the media tower that houses the Associated Press, BBC, Al Jazeera, and other news organizations. Netanyahu has defended the strike as legitimate, stating that the structure also housed Hamas military intelligence, without giving any evidence on that matter. Perhaps this was a trigger for Secretary of State Anthony Blinken to travel to the region. 

Yet, after 11 consecutive days of ruthless bombardment of the defenseless people of Gaza, and after blocking the United Nations Security Council for three times to issue mild statements to criticize Israel, the U.S. was forced to oblige Netanyahu to accept an offer for an unconditional ceasefire. Biden released a video message on Friday offering his condolences to the families of Israeli and Palestinian victims. 

He said that both the Israelis and the Palestinians “equally deserve to live in safety and security and to enjoy equal measures of freedom, prosperity, and democracy.” He did not mention the fact that the Israeli Supreme Court ruled in favor of evicting Palestinians from their homes in Sheikh Jarrah. He did not mention the fact that he has opposed a referendum as a final solution to the decades-long Palestinian issue put forward by Iran. 

He did not explain how the Palestinians can elect their government freely and democratically. He did not explain what the Israelis are doing in the lands of millions of Palestinians. These are the questions the global community poses to the 78-year-old politician, demanding answers. 

Social media has taken on a new approach in the world of politics these days. One of its privileges is that the Palestine narrative cannot be censored or distorted anymore. Although platforms such as Instagram are trying their best to censor the Gazans by removing related hashtags and posts, the world is now aware of the true face of Israel as a thief. Movements like Black Lives Matter have expressed solidarity with the Palestinians, asking to reclaim the narrative on the Palestine crisis. 

Following the third UN Security Council emergency meeting in a week, the United States used its veto power to block a proposed statement drafted by China, Norway, and Tunisia and supported by the other 11 members of the Council. No vote was held on the statement. Arab countries, especially Tunisia, Qatar, Jordan and Egypt tried their best to broker a ceasefire, while China strongly pushed for a condemnation from the UNSC. The U.S., however, backed its ally by blocking the request and pressured the UN to be silent. 

Biden made a phone call to Netanyahu asking for “significant de-escalation” in Gaza. But does he really care? The U.S. does not directly deal with Hamas. Egypt acts as a link. However, the Biden administration is in close contact with Egypt and Israel and thus it is conducting a sort of indirect mediation between Israel and Hamas through Egypt. This reminds analysts of the famous Queen song, Show Must Go On. The show of public mediation and private backing of Israel unconditionally must go on.

Biden definitely knows that in terms of international law and humanitarian issues, he is standing on the wrong side. With an incomparable death toll of 12 Israelis against over 300 Palestinians, the U.S. is openly supporting its longtime ally, putting on a facade pretending as a mediator for peace. Don’t be surprised if Biden is nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize for his tireless efforts to bring peace to Palestine!

The Americans have a tough job supporting Israel in public this time, since the Israeli atrocities have turned the world against them. Even Arab countries that normalized ties with Israel under the so-called “Abraham Accords” criticized Israel’s behavior over the recent events in the West Bank. The UAE tried to broker a peace between Israel and Palestine. As his longtime friend, Netanyahu asked Biden not to intervene in the situation, yet buying $735 million American precision-guided weapons, it seems that the 78-year-old AIPAC lobbyist is in a dilemma. 

Biden and Netanyahu both knew that the Israeli target bank had run out of targets. Israel was targeting civilians, cars, media offices, and infrastructure in Gaza.

On the other hand, the Iron Dome proved ineffective, failing to intercept hundreds of missiles fired every day by Hamas and the Islamic Jihad Movement. The Jerusalem Post wrote on May 14 that Hamas has identified a way to get past the Iron Dome.
 
The Palestinian response to the Israeli atrocities shocked the world and the Israelis. Their “stone intifada” turned into “missile intifada”. They fired missiles at Israel in its entirety, therefore pushing large number of Israeli settlers into shelters for the first time in decades. The Palestinians could keep on the fight back and push Israel, that’s when Biden comes to the rescue. Now it is the time to put on the face of a show-stopper. As a mediator he, along with Egypt and Jordan, pushed Netanyahu to accept an unconditional ceasefire, while there have been press reports that Israel has agreed to stop the Sheikh Jarrah eviction. 

What Biden and Netanyahu failed to understand is that their strike on Gaza united the whole world against them. Even the Palestinians who live in the 1948 lands held demonstrations against the attacks. The public opinion pressured France to put forward a draft UNSC resolution; yet, in an idiotic move, the Biden administration threatened to block the resolution.

There has never been a better time to hold a referendum to solve the Palestinian issue once and for all.
The news of an immediate, unconditional ceasefire brought the Gazans to the streets as they celebrated a break from 11 days of constant bombardment. They poured onto the streets showing V signs and waving flags. 

Major infrastructure, such as electricity and water supplies, has also been damaged as a result of the Israeli bombardments. People have been asking the municipality for water as the main pipeline has been heavily damaged. Yet, the United States seems to have taken the approach of silence. Weapons can be sold to Israel, but, humanitarian aid to Gazans no!

SA/PA