Israel is expected to expand its offensive in Rafah after President Joe Biden threatened to withhold military aid in protest of the Jewish state’s battle plans in the Gaza city.
The Israeli war cabinet voted Thursday evening to expand the scope of its operation in Rafah after Biden said he would refuse to supply key offensive weapons if Israel conducts a full-scale invasion of the city, according to Axios.
Earlier this week, Israel began a limited offensive in Rafah and struck Hamas targets in the eastern part of the city, Hamas’s last major stronghold in Gaza. Before doing so, Israel ordered 100,000 Gazans to evacuate the area and go to a humanitarian zone to receive aid.
Hamas said on Monday that it agreed to a revised cease-fire proposal put forward by Egypt and Qatar. Israeli leaders accused the terrorist group of deception in agreeing to the revised deal with the purpose of generating backlash against Israel.
The day before Israel started its offensive, Hamas launched rockets at a key humanitarian corridor, killing at least four people and injuring at least ten more.
Israel quickly took control of the border crossing between Gaza and Egypt. The area is a major humanitarian corridor. The Biden administration is pressing Israel to reopen the Rafah crossing, according to reports.
Humanitarian aid into Rafah could grind to a halt in the coming days, the United Nations has warned. Meanwhile, the U.N. General Assembly voted on Friday to pass a resolution supporting Palestinian membership in the organization, a move that could strengthen calls for the U.S. to cut off U.N. funding.
The Israel Defense Forces said on Friday that five rockets were launched at the Israeli city of Beersheba and four of them hit open areas.
Biden said during a CNN interview on Wednesday that the White House would not supply Israel with some forms of ammunition if Israel pursues a large-scale Rafah invasion. In response, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said his country is prepared to “stand alone” if necessary. Republicans and some Democrats have strongly criticized Biden’s threat and urged him to remain committed to Israel’s effort to destroy Hamas.
Last week, the Biden administration withheld bomb shipments to Israel over concerns over a possible large-scale invasion of Rafah. The decision to pause bomb shipments happened soon after Biden signed a $95 billion bipartisan foreign aid package with roughly $26 billion of aid to Israel and humanitarian operations in Gaza.
Far-left Democrats have strongly opposed U.S. support for Israel’s military campaign against Hamas following the terrorist group’s civilian massacre on October 7.