The US gives Israel a failing grade when it comes to improving aid to Gaza so far

WASHINGTON – The Biden administration is stepping up criticism of Israel not doing enough to improve humanitarian conditions in Gaza as a 30-day deadline looms for Israeli officials to meet certain demands or risk possible restrictions on military aid.

The government also condemns the recent violence against Palestinians in the West Bank by extremist Jewish settlers and says those responsible must be held accountable.

State Department spokesman Matthew Miller on Monday gave Israel an “inadequate” grade in terms of meeting the conditions for improving aid deliveries to Gaza, as outlined in a letter to senior Israeli officials last month by Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin.

He said there are about nine days left before the deadline ends, but the limited progress so far has been insufficient.

“As of today, the situation has not changed significantly,” Miller told reporters. “We see an increase in some measurements. But if you look at the recommendations made in the letter, they were not achieved.”

A day earlier the American electionsdeclared the Biden administration its closest ally, with support for Israel an important issue for many voters and the humanitarian crisis for Palestinians is also a factor for many in the race. Former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris have been competing for Muslim and Arab-American voters and Jewish voters in battleground states like Michigan and Pennsylvania.

Austin and Blinken’s letter from mid-October stated, among other things, that Israel should allow at least 350 trucks a day with much-needed food and other supplies for Palestinians besieged by more than a year of war between Israel and Hamas. According to the latest UN figures, an average of only 71 trucks entered Gaza per day at the end of October.

“The results today are not good enough,” Miller said. “They certainly don’t have a pass. … They have failed to implement all the things we recommended. That said, we are not yet at the end of the 30 day period.”

When asked what the US would do as the deadline approaches next week, he would not say, only that “we will follow the law.”

Similarly, Austin has emphasized “the importance of ensuring that humanitarian aid can flow and flow more quickly into Gaza” in talks with his Israeli counterpart, Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder, Pentagon press secretary, told reporters Monday.

The Israeli military body responsible for humanitarian aid to Gaza, known as COGAT, said it had evacuated 72 patients On Monday, they had been transported from hospitals in northern Gaza to other medical facilities, bringing with them medical supplies, fuel, food, water and units of blood.

The head of UNICEF, the UN agency for children, said this weekend that “the entire Palestinian population in northern Gaza, especially children, is at immediate risk of death from disease, famine and the continued bombing.”

Miller also said the US is investigating a decision by the Israeli government terminate an agreement facilitating the work of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, known as UNRWA the main aid provider in Gaza.

It followed the adoption of Israeli laws last week to cut ties with UNRWA, a move that Blinken and Austin opposed in their letter.

Israel’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement Monday that it has notified the UN of the cancellation of a 1967 agreement that facilitates UNRWA’s work. It said UNRWA “is part of the problem in the Gaza Strip and not part of the solution.”

Israel claims that UNRWA has been infiltrated by Hamas, which the agency denies and says it is taking measures to guarantee its neutrality.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres reiterated that UNRWA is essential and that there is no alternative to its work in the Palestinian territories, spokesman Stephane Dujarric said.

At the same time, Miller said the U.S. is “deeply concerned” by a recent escalation of attacks by Israeli settlers on Palestinians in the West Bank, including several cars set on fire overnight just a few miles from the Palestinian Authority headquarters stabbed. attacks on Palestinians harvesting olives, their livestock and other property.

“These violent actions are causing intense human suffering for Palestinians and threaten Israel’s security,” Miller said. “It is critical that the Government of Israel deter extremist settler violence and take measures to protect all communities from harm, in accordance with its international obligations.”

He noted that the US has imposed sanctions on Israeli groups and people involved in violence against Palestinian civilians since the beginning of the year and warned of more.

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AP reporters Ellen Knickmeyer and Lolita C. Baldor in Washington and Edith M. Lederer at the United Nations contributed.