The Times of Israel is liveblogging Wednesday’s events as they happen.
In major policy shift, Biden calls for Israel to unilaterally declare ceasefire in Gaza
US President Joe Biden has called on Israel to unilaterally agree to a six-to-eight week ceasefire, in an apparent retreat from his administration’s stance that conditioned a truce in Gaza on Hamas releasing some of the hostages it’s holding in the Strip.
“What I’m calling for is for the Israelis to just call for a ceasefire, allow for the next six, eight weeks, total access to all food and medicine going into the country,” Biden tells the Univision, a US Spanish-language TV network.
“I’ve spoken with everyone from the Saudis to the Jordanians to the Egyptians. They’re prepared to move in,” Biden says. “They’re prepared to move this food in. And I think there’s no excuse to not provide for the medical and the food needs of those people. It should be done now.”
Asked whether Netanyahu is more concerned about political survival than Israelis’ national interest, Biden responds, “I think what he’s doing is a mistake… I don’t agree with his approach,.”
The Univsion interview was taped last Wednesday — two days after the IDF’s deadly strike on a World Central Kitchen convoy and a day before he held a call with Netanyahu during which he reportedly threatened to cease support of Israel during the war unless Jerusalem made major changes to address the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
Hours after the call, the security cabinet approved a series of gestures aimed at significantly boosting aid to Gaza. The past several days have seen the largest number of aid trucks enter the Strip since the war’s outbreak, and the US has welcomed the steps in what might explain why Washington has not gone on to make the same call for a unilateral Israeli ceasefire that Biden made last week before these steps were taken by Israel.
Hours before the interview aired, Biden’s top aides went on record presenting a very different approach to how the US wants to see a ceasefire come about, insisting that it was Hamas, not Israel that is holding up a deal that would see an extended pause in fighting, the hostages released and aid surge into Gaza.
“There could be a ceasefire in place today that would extend for several weeks to be built upon longer if Hamas would be prepared to release some of those people, so let’s train the attention where it belongs… I believe Israel is ready and Hamas should step up to the table and be prepared to do so as well,” said US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan.
Hamas “has an opportunity now to agree to the proposal on a ceasefire and hostages. The ball is in Hamas’s court. The world is watching to see what it does,” US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said.
Also on Tuesday, US Vice President Kamala Harris met with the families of some of the American hostages at the White House and expressed the administration’s continued commitment to securing their release.
GOP senators introduce bill aimed at downgrading Qatar ties if it doesn’t pressure Hamas
A group of Republican senators has introduced legislation that aims to strip Qatar of its status as a major non-NATO ally (MNNA) of the US if Doha doesn’t exert all leverage it has over Hamas to secure the release of the American hostages in Gaza, in addition to expelling all members of the terror group currently residing in the Gulf state.
The bill co-sponsored by Senators Ted Budd, Rick Scott and Joni Ernst would require US Secretary of State Antony Blinken to certify that it is in the national interest of the US for Qatar to maintain its designation as a major non-NATO ally; that Qatar does not directly or indirectly provide aid to Hamas; that it is sufficiently pressuring Hamas to release the hostages; and that it has expelled Hamas members along with all others involved in the October 7 attack on Israel.
“If the secretary of state cannot make this certification in good faith, then the president is required to immediately terminate the designation of the State of Qatar as a major non-NATO ally,” says the legislation.
MNNA status offers countries a series of privileges and financial advantages in their ties with the US.
Qatar’s Embassy in Washington says it’s disappointed by the legislation, stating its status as a NMMA of the US was earned through close defense ties between the countries.
“[But] our partnership with the US is not only defense related. Among other things, Qatar has quietly and successfully mediated the release of Americans held in Afghanistan, Iran and Venezuela,” the statement adds. “This is a record of successful collaboration based on shared interests and commitments. Especially in this delicate moment in our region, it is reckless to undermine the partnerships that America and its allies have built carefully over decades.”
The embassy also addresses Qatar’s ties with Israel and Hamas, claiming “our relationship with both is entirely based” on being a mediator.
“In the current crisis, Qatar’s record as a mediator speaks for itself, with over 100 hostages released to date. We are determined to do everything possible, but Qatar is only a mediator — we do not control Hamas or Israel. In the end, Hamas and Israel alone are responsible for reaching an agreement. “
Irish FM says Dublin poised to recognize Palestinian state
DUBLIN — Ireland will move to recognize a Palestinian state in the coming weeks, Irish Foreign Minister Micheal Martin says in Dublin.
Martin says he will bring a formal proposal on recognition of a Palestinian state to the government when “wider international discussions” are complete.
“Be in no doubt, recognition of a Palestinian state will happen,” he tells the Irish parliament during a speech.
Delaying recognition “is not credible or tenable any longer,” he says.
Martin tells local news site the Journal that the formal proposal will happen “in the next couple of weeks.”
Contradicting Netanyahu, Gallant told Austin no date set for Rafah op — source
Defense Minister Yoav Gallant told US counterpart Lloyd Austin during a call yesterday that Israel has not set a date for the launch of a major ground offensive in Rafah, contradicting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, a source familiar with the matter tells The Times of Israel.
Gallant said Israel is still finalizing its plans to evacuate the roughly 1.5 million Palestinians currently sheltering in Gaza’s southernmost city after fleeing the fighting areas to the north, the source says, confirming reporting in Axios and Haaretz.
The call took place hours after Netanyahu claimed in a public statement that a date had been set for the Rafah operation.
“If he has a date he hasn’t shared it with us,” US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan told reporters earlier today when asked if Jerusalem had briefed Washington on its plans.
He went on to note that Netanyahu “makes public statements [but] also talks to us in private about aspects of operations and their thinking with Rafah in some considerable detail,” indicating that there is often a discrepancy between the two.