The possible Rafah invasion and the status of US-Israel relations - opinion

On February 18, Israel’s cabinet unanimously declared its opposition to the unilateral recognition of a Palestinian state. The vote came amid mounting pressure from the international community, including Israel’s number one ally, the United States. The unanimous vote was a particularly powerful statement considering Israel is currently governed by a broad coalition that includes centrist parties that were not part of the government until the outbreak of the current war.

The timing of this cabinet vote had everything to do with recent reports in The Washington Post that the Biden administration is working with Arab partners on a detailed plan that includes a “firm timeline” for the creation of a Palestinian state. 

This comes after months of Secretary of State Antony Blinken repeatedly stating that America is committed to establishing such a state to be led by the current Palestinian Authority leadership. This despite the inconvenient fact that the PA is supported by less than 20% of Arabs in Judea and Samaria and is led by Mahmoud Abbas, a Holocaust denier who openly calls for Israel’s destruction and pays pensions to terrorist murderers.

Considering the messaging coming out of the State Department these past few months, the unanimous cabinet vote was an open act of defiance against the US administration. Contrast this defiance with what we saw early in the war, when, on October 12 Israel’s Defense Minister Yoav Gallant admitted he bowed to US pressure. 

Gallant was asked at the time why the Israelis were allowing “humanitarian aid” including fuel into Gaza City, aid that would assuredly fall into Hamas hands and prolong the war. “The Americans insisted,” Gallant said, “and we are not in a place where we can refuse them. We rely on them for planes and military equipment. What are we supposed to do – tell them no?”

NEARLY FIVE months later, as Israel plans its assault on the last remaining Hamas stronghold in Rafah, the Biden administration has joined the chorus in the international community calling on Israel to back off. While US pressure has delayed entry into Rafah, the Israeli leadership’s insistence that a full-scale invasion is inevitable is another sign of this new trend of defiance of Washington.

The Biden administration insists that the problem is Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Numerous mainstream media outlets in the US reported last month that American officials are seeking a replacement for Israel’s right-wing government and are even working towards this goal together with opposition leaders in Israel.

While Biden’s disdain for Netanyahu’s coalition government is nothing new, Israel’s new willingness to transparently push back on the US administration is a welcome, if uncomfortable development. And despite Joe Biden’s hope that he can replace Netanyahu with a more malleable, left-leaning government, polling shows that the strong stance taken by the prime minister accurately reflects the will of the Israeli people. If anything, it may not be strong enough.

Damaged US-Israel relations?

According to data released in mid-February by Direct Polls, a respected Israeli polling agency, Israelis were asked the following: Must Israel engage in an expanded military operation in Rafah, even at the price of damaged relations with the United States and Egypt? Almost three-quarters (73%) responded yes, 23% said no, and 4% were undecided. It is worth noting that this poll included Arab-Israelis, who make up 21% of the population. 

Bearing in mind the importance that Israelis place on the US–Israel relationship, these results are significant. The Biden administration should take note. More than ever, the Israeli people are willing to go it alone.

NO DOUBT, the current diplomatic moment is worrisome and dangerous for Israel. Defying a Democratic US administration during an election year invites problems we’d rather not deal with. That said, should the Israeli leadership continue to stand firm against this pressure and continue to do what it must to achieve victory over Hamas, there is a silver lining that ought not to be missed.

A well-known statement by the Talmudic sage Shmuel, later codified by Maimonides, states: “The sole difference between this world and the days of the Messiah is subjugation to foreign kings” (Talmud Bavli Shabbat 151b). In other words, the defining distinction between the exile of the Jewish people and our redemption is not merely about location. The Jews of the late 2nd Temple period lived in the land of Israel with a Temple standing in Jerusalem, and yet they were essentially in exile in their own land, living under Greek and then Roman authority.

Israel’s national anthem speaks of “the hope of two thousand years to be a free nation in our land.”

Prime Minister Netanyahu faces a monumental challenge. The stakes are high. To bow to US pressure and alter the course of the war in a way that would benefit our enemies and minimize our chances of victory means nothing less than the prolonging of the exile of the Jewish people, the “subjugation to foreign kings.” Conversely, a choice to act in Israel’s best interests, regardless of pressure from the US, would be a moment of emancipation for our nation as a whole. Prime Minister Netanyahu, the people are behind you. We are ready. Choose redemption.

The writer, a rabbi, is executive director of Israel365action.com and co-host of the Shoulder to Shoulder podcast.