Two Israeli airstrikes on Tuesday – one that killed seven food aid workers in a convoy in Gaza and another that killed seven Iranian Revolutionary Guards personnel at the Iranian embassy in Syria – , could trigger a new phase in the war, which has lasted six months. The misery is worsening and its scope is expanding.
These incidents once again highlight the need for external powers, particularly Arab and Western, to quickly end this war before the situation spirals further out of control.
Official investigation into how the Israeli attack on three World Central Kitchen vehicles, which have been feeding thousands of war victims and refugees in Gaza, Israel, Ukraine and other areas of crisis, happened. Whatever the outcome, it should not have been tolerated. In any case, this led to WCK and other aid organizations suspending their operations in Gaza. and Relief efforts, hunger and sanitation are approaching catastrophic levels.
The airstrike on Iranian officers was clearly intentional, but it's unclear what prompted it, and it was carried out without prior notice to President Biden, even though the US was likely the target. Because of this, they drew us into war. Directly – if Iran decides to retaliate.
It is unlikely that the Iranian government will not react at all to Tuesday's attack. Five years ago, Shiite militias attacked the U.S. embassy after a U.S. drone strike killed one of Iran's top commanders, Qasem Soleimani, and four of his aides on a Baghdad airport runway. started. No one was killed, but 34 American soldiers suffered severe brain injuries.
Whatever action Iran takes now, it could signal a tactical shift and strategic escalation. The Iranian government has been keen to avoid direct involvement in the war, perhaps deterred in part by the influence of U.S. carrier battle groups in the Mediterranean, and has in recent weeks urged proxy militias in the region to tone down their attacks. It's putting pressure on you.
Iran tightened restrictions after such an attack killed three U.S. military personnel in Jordan. In response, U.S. Central Command launched a series of attacks, killing 40 Iranian-backed militiamen, and U.S. diplomats held secret talks with their Iranian counterparts. Israel therefore had an obligation to consult Washington before taking any action that might change the Iranian government's risk-benefit calculus.
It is not yet known how Israeli fighter jets came to fire precision-guided munitions at three separate vehicles of the WCK convoy. Erin Gore, the organization's CEO, called it a “targeted attack by the IDF.” The term suggests that the IDF deliberately killed aid workers. This is unlikely. The Israel Defense Forces have no interest in killing members of an international aid organization (one of whom is an American citizen) who is much loved across political lines. Significantly, the IDF chief and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu quickly acknowledged the IDF's responsibility and apologized for the mistake, something he has rarely done after other attacks that killed civilians. (Headline from Israeli left-wing newspaper Haaretz Read: “If Israel thought all the Gaza casualties were a PR disaster.”)
But it would be naive to sigh and shrug it off, as some have done, as an example of the kind of “comradeship” that “happens” on a tangled battlefield at night. As WCK founder José Andrés wrote in a New York Times op-ed, the three vehicles were “clearly marked” and were traveling on routes and schedules known to the IDF.
This type of coordination, which WCK has done meticulously and frequently, is known as “conflict resolution.” The term is typically applied to communications between the militaries of opposing countries to inform each other when and where they are conducting flights, exercises, or missile tests to avoid misunderstandings and reduce the risk of accidental conflict. Masu. The United States and Russia regularly sent each other deconfliction notifications when their warplanes were scheduled to fly over or near Syria. WCK and other aid organizations have gone through this same process when timing and planning convoy routes.
The significance of the WCK killing, besides the tragedy itself, is that it shows that the Israeli military is not paying as much attention to deconfliction arrangements as it should. President Biden made this point clear in a statement released Tuesday night. After declaring he was “outraged and heartbroken” by the death, he said:
What's even more tragic is that this is not an isolated incident. …This is the main reason why it is so difficult to distribute humanitarian aid in Gaza – because Israel is not doing enough to protect aid workers. …The United States has repeatedly urged Israel to avoid conflict between military and humanitarian operations against Hamas to avoid civilian casualties.
veteran diplomatic journalist Laura RosenHe, who has reported extensively on the failure, cited Israel's “haphazard deconfliction system” after the attack and said that whatever the exact cause of the incident, “Israel has clearly made deconfliction a priority. I wasn't paying enough attention.”
jeremy konyndykThe president of Refugees International tweeted shortly after the airstrike. President Biden and his top officials know that. But they have done little more than reprimand the Israelis for this, while continuing to send weapons. This is an inevitable outcome. ”
Israel is not the only one blocking aid from reaching Gazans. There are also reports that Hamas armed groups have intercepted food deliveries meant for civilians in Gaza. Early in the war, one Hamas leader said the terrorist organization, which has ruled Gaza since 2007, had no obligation to protect Gaza's civilians and that it was a matter for the United Nations.
Still, after the WCK killing, it is helpful for Mr. Biden to pin the “main” part of the problem on Israeli negligence.now he has it publicly Although he has criticized Israel for ignoring American pressure to end the conflict, perhaps he will start doing more than just reprimanding.
The many Arab-Israeli wars of the past 76 years all ended as a result of pressure from outside forces. In recent months, external powers with some connection to the outcome of this war, the United States, Egypt, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia, have been pushing for a ceasefire, hostage and prisoner exchanges, and diplomatic moves beyond that.It's time for everyone to step up pressure.
