Tensions between the White House and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government neared the boiling point Monday as Biden administration officials ramped up their public pressure on Jerusalem over the “intolerable” humanitarian conditions in the Gaza Strip while simultaneously embracing one of Mr. Netanyahu’s most popular political rivals.
In what seems to be a politically calculated move, Vice President Kamala Harris and other key administration officials met with Israeli official Benny Gantz on Monday, though Mr. Netanyahu’s team downplayed the visits and rejected any suggestion that Mr. Gantz was representing the prime minister.
The centrist Mr. Gantz, who joined the prime minister’s “war cabinet” after Hamas’ Oct. 7 terrorist attack on Israel, is widely viewed as one of Mr. Netanyahu’s chief political threats. Some recent polls have also shown him to be more popular than Mr. Netanyahu among the Israeli public.
Mr. Gantz’s rogue trip to America threatens to undermine Mr. Netanyahu’s already fragile government at home, which is facing rapidly growing criticism over its handling of the war against Hamas in Gaza. In the U.S., the meetings seem to signal that the administration is eager to work with Israeli officials other than Mr. Netanyahu, who by most accounts has a frosty relationship with President Biden and has rapidly fallen out of favor in liberal circles amid the scenes of civilian suffering in Gaza and Israel’s unwillingness to provide clear end dates for its war.
Upon arriving in Washington Monday, Mr. Gantz seemed to relish the opportunity to speak directly to top administration officials and, at the same time, to deal a public relations blow to Mr. Netanyahu.
“With friends, one must always speak openly, and that’s what we will do,” Mr. Gantz, a former Israeli defense minister and commanding general of Israel’s military, told reporters as he entered the White House, according to English-language media translations of his remarks, which were made in Hebrew.
Mr. Gantz was also expected to meet with White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan and top congressional leaders during his stay in Washington. Administration officials were expected to privately press Mr. Gantz to pursue a cease-fire deal with Hamas and to take steps to lessen civilian casualties in Gaza.
Mr. Netanyahu was said to be furious over the visit by Mr. Gantz, according to Israeli media. Citing a source close to Mr. Netanyahu, the Times of Israel reported that the Israeli leader informed Mr. Gantz that “the State of Israel only has one prime minister” — a warning against attempting to strike any informal agreements with the White House behind Mr. Netanyahu’s back.
At the same time, Mr. Netanyahu has watched his own relationship with the Biden administration deteriorate. The prime minister’s office denied media reports Monday that Mr. Biden last week refused to take a phone call from Mr. Netanyahu, calling the reports “fake news.”
But there is no denying the tensions between the two sides. Mr. Biden, long a staunch supporter of Israel as a senator and as vice president, last month called Israel’s conduct of its military campaign in the Gaza Strip “over the top,” even as the U.S. stressed that the Jewish state has the right to defend itself after the horrific Oct. 7 Hamas attacks.
Ahead of her meeting with Mr. Gantz, Ms. Harris on Sunday offered the administration’s strongest rebuke to date of Israel and its handling of the situation in Gaza, where tens of thousands of Palestinians have died in the crossfire between Israel and Hamas militants, according to some estimates, and where scores of civilians lack access to medicine, food, water and shelter.
“People in Gaza are starving. The conditions are inhumane. And our common humanity compels us to act,” she said during a speech in Selma, Alabama. “And the Israeli government must do more to significantly increase the flow of aid. No excuses. They must open new border crossings. They must not impose any unnecessary restrictions on the delivery of aid. They must ensure humanitarian personnel, sites, and convoys are not targeted. And they must work to restore basic services and promote order in Gaza so more food, water, and fuel can reach those in need.”
Israel maintains that Hamas is to blame for the suffering. The Palestinian terrorist group, Israel says, routinely uses schools, hospitals and civilians as shields for its war against the Jewish state.
Increasing the pressure
But with Mr. Gantz on American soil, the administration tried to drive home its message Monday.
“The situation is simply intolerable,” State Department spokesman Matthew Miller told reporters, referring to Gaza.
he U.S. has begun airdrops to deliver badly needed supplies to the Palestinian people, and Israel recently has allowed more aid to flow into the enclave. But Mr. Miller said the amount of aid is still “significantly below” the levels needed to avert a widespread famine.
The administration is pressing for a deal that would facilitate the release of an estimated 100 hostages still held by Hamas in exchange for a six-week pause in the fighting, during which time the humanitarian aid flowing into Gaza could increase dramatically. Israel is open to such a deal, but Hamas seems to be insisting on a much longer pause to the fighting, perhaps even a permanent end. Representatives from Hamas met with Egyptian mediators in Cairo on Monday for another round of cease-fire negotiations, though Israel declined to send its own officials to those talks.
Ahead of her meeting with Mr. Gantz, Ms. Harris said now is the time to secure a deal.
“We’re in a window of time right now where we can actually get a hostage deal done. We all want this conflict to end as soon as possible, and how it does matters,” she told reporters.
The White House offered few details of the Harris-Gantz meeting, largely sticking to known talking points while acknowledging the Netanyahu government had taken a “constructive approach” to the current negotiations.
Mrs. Harris “expressed her deep concern about the humanitarian conditions in Gaza and the recent horrific tragedy around an aid convoy in northern Gaza,” the White House account said.
The vice president also “discussed the urgency of achieving a hostage deal and welcomed Israel’s constructive approach to the hostage talks,” according to the readout.
The U.S. put pressure on Israel from other directions Monday. Amid continued violence between Israel and the Lebanon-based militant group Hezbollah, U.S. special envoy Amos Hochstein visited Beirut in an effort to cool tensions.
The American diplomat warned that an Israel-Hezbollah war would not be “containable,” echoing the administration’s longstanding fear that Israel’s fight against Hamas in Gaza could eventually explode into a much wider Middle East war.
“The United States remains committed to advancing lasting security solutions achieved through [the] diplomatic process,” Mr. Hochstein said Monday after meeting with Lebanese officials.
The visit came the same day that Israeli rescuers said a foreign worker was killed and several others wounded by an anti-tank missile fired from Lebanon. The Magen David Adom rescue service said it treated seven people, including two in serious condition.
Since the Israel-Hamas war began, more than 215 Hezbollah fighters and nearly 40 civilians were killed on the Lebanese side while in Israel, nine soldiers and 10 civilians were left dead in the attacks, according to the Associated Press.
— This article is based in part on wire service reports.
• Ben Wolfgang can be reached at bwolfgang@washingtontimes.com.