(JNS) U.S. State Department spokesman Matthew Miller accused Israeli ministers of being an “obstacle” to Gaza aid on Tuesday, as Washington continues to press Israel to do more to help Palestinian civilians.
Miller was asked at the State Department’s daily press briefing what White House adviser John Kirby meant on Monday when he said that some “inorganic obstacles” to aid delivery had been put in place by the Israeli cabinet.
“You have seen ministers in the Israeli government block the release of flour from the port at Ashdod,” Miller said. “You have seen ministers of the Israeli government supporting protests that blocked aid from going into Kerem Shalom. All of those things are obstacles coming from ministers inside the Israeli government that we have called out, that we have said should end.”
Jonathan Panikoff, director of the Atlantic Council’s Scowcroft Middle East Security Initiative, told JNS that the Biden administration has clearly changed its tone, reflecting White House frustration about the aid situation in Gaza. That’s been particularly the case in the wake of last week’s riot, during which dozens of Palestinians were killed while aid was being delivered.
“I think the convoy last week—even accounting for the facts coming out that there were two different incidents—really encapsulated the frustration by the White House and much of Congress, especially Democrats. Even a small number of Gazans seeking food being killed by the IDF, and even if they rushed the area, should not have happened,” Panikoff said.
“The idea that five months into the conflict, there’s still not sufficient planning for food delivery was rather shocking to U.S. officials,” Panikoff added.
Miller did not name the ministers that Washington held responsible.
