On Sunday, an Israeli airstrike killed 45 people in Rafah, something that the country’s prime minister said was a “mistake,” but has it crossed President Joe Biden’s line?
Sunday’s airstrike was launched on a displacement camp in the southern Gaza city, and while it took out two Hamas leaders, it also killed dozens, sparking outrage from both allies and critics of Israel.
During a White House press conference on Tuesday, White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said that Israel’s actions would not spark any change from the Biden administration.
“As a result of this strike on Sunday, I have no policy changes to speak to. It just happened,” Kirby told reporters. “The Israelis are going to investigate it. We’re going to be taking great interest in what they find in that investigation. And we’ll see where it goes from there.”
Kirby said that the situation was “heartbreaking” and that the US would look for answers from Israel following its own investigation into the incident.
Kirby also called on Israel to take precautions and protect civilian life as it continues to battle Hamas in the region, or otherwise become more isolated from its allies. However, he didn’t say that the US would withhold weapons or aid as a result of the attack.
Earlier this month, during a sit-down interview with CNN, Biden appeared to draw a red line, saying that he would not supply Israel with artillery shells, bombs for fighter jets, or other offensive weapons if the country invaded the Gaza city of Rafah.
“I made it clear that if they go into Rafah — they haven’t gone into Rafah yet — if they go into Rafah, I’m not supplying the weapons that have been used historically to deal with Rafah, to deal with the cities,” Biden said.
On Tuesday, Israeli tanks were seen in Central Rafah for the first time since the war began in October.
As for this weekend’s airstrike, Vice President Kamala Harris commented on the attack, saying, “the word tragic doesn’t even begin to describe it.” However, she declined to answer questions about whether or not it crossed a red line.
Still, Kirby says that Israel’s actions in Rafah have not become a massive ground operation, which is what the US is continuing to push against.
“Should that occur, then it might make him have to make different decisions in terms of support. We haven’t seen that happen at this point,” Kirby said.
The president has not yet commented on the situation.