What happened
Israel announced "immediate steps" to get more humanitarian aid into Gaza late Thursday, hours after President Joe Biden told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that without increased aid and reduced civilian harm, the White House might change its policy on Israel's Gaza war.
Who said what
Biden said Israel's "strikes on humanitarian workers" are "unacceptable" and demanded immediate, "specific, concrete and measurable steps" to address the humanitarian situation in Gaza, The White House said. "If we don't see changes from their side, there will be changes from our side," national security spokesperson John Kirby said.
The commentary
"The U.S. had asked Israel to implement those steps months ago but Netanyahu" balked "under pressure from his political base and ultranationalist members of his coalition to limit aid into Gaza," Barak Ravid said at Axios. Israel's deadly strike on World Central Kitchen workers prompted previously unseen "outrage" in the White House. The "tense 30-minute call" with Netanyahu was the first time Biden "leveraged U.S. aid to influence the conduct of the war against Hamas," The New York Times said.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
What next?
Israel said it will open the Erez crossing in northern Gaza and allow significantly more aid trucks from Jordan, among other changes. National Security Council spokesperson Adrienne Watson said the White House welcomes Israel's announced steps, and they "must now be fully and rapidly implemented."
-
The issue dividing Israel: ultra-Orthodox draft dodgersIn the Spotlight A new bill has solidified the community’s ‘draft evasion’ stance, with this issue becoming the country’s ‘greatest internal security threat’
-
Senate votes down ACA subsidies, GOP alternativeSpeed Read The Senate rejected the extension of Affordable Care Act tax credits, guaranteeing a steep rise in health care costs for millions of Americans
-
Abrego García freed from jail on judge’s orderSpeed Read The wrongfully deported man has been released from an ICE detention center
-
Indiana Senate rejects Trump’s gerrymander pushSpeed Read The proposed gerrymander would have likely flipped the state’s two Democratic-held US House seats
-
Democrat files to impeach RFK Jr.Speed Read Rep. Haley Stevens filed articles of impeachment against Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
-
$1M ‘Trump Gold Card’ goes live amid travel rule furorSpeed Read The new gold card visa offers an expedited path to citizenship in exchange for $1 million
-
US seizes oil tanker off VenezuelaSpeed Read The seizure was a significant escalation in the pressure campaign against Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro
-
Judge orders release of Ghislaine Maxwell recordsSpeed Read The grand jury records from the 2019 prosecution of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein will be made public
