YE - US Israel Policy WEB
Metadata
- YE - US Israel Policy WEB
- December 13, 2023
- Content Type Package
- Language English
- Transcript/Script ((PLAYBOOK SLUG: YE US ISRAEL POLICY HEADLINE: Biden Warns Netanyahu Israel Is Losing Support in War Against Hamas TEASER: US President Joe Biden and his administration are closely tied to Israel, as the United States has been since the Jewish state was established in 1948. But experts say Biden is now asking Israel to change course to avoid losing international support. PUBLISHED AT: 12/13/2023 at 5:11 p BYLINE: Cindy Saine CONTRIBUTOR: DATELINE: State Department VIDEOGRAPHER: PRODUCER: SCRIPT EDITORS: Aru Pande, Reifenrath, DJ (OK) VIDEO SOURCE (S): Saine Zoom interviews, AFP, AP, Reuters PLATFORMS (mark with X): WEB __ TV _x_ RADIO x__ TRT: 3:50 VID APPROVED BY: Reifenrath TYPE: TVR Package EDITOR NOTES: )) ((INTRO)) [[The Biden administration's support of Israel in the war against Hamas has drawn sharp criticism both from Americans protesting Palestinian civilian deaths and from State Department staff calling for a cease-fire. Meanwhile, President Joe Biden has been signaling to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that he needs to change course or risk international standing. VOA Senior Diplomatic Correspondent Cindy Saine reports.]] ((NARRATOR)) For decades, the United States has sought to mediate the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians over land, control of religious sites and sovereignty. In 1993, a promising moment at the White House, when Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and Palestine Liberation Organization negotiator Mahmoud Abbas signed a declaration on self-government, commonly referred to as the “Oslo Accords.” Peace appeared close at hand, but the Palestinians ended up violating the agreement, according to former U.S. Assistant Secretary of Defense Lawrence Korb, who witnessed the signing. Korb, now a senior fellow with the Center for American Progress, tells VOA he still believes in a two-state solution, but under a new Palestinian leadership. ((Lawrence Korb, Center for American Progress)) ((Zoom)) “Now the Palestinians got to get their act together. Their leader, Mahmoud Abbas, he's out of it, he's too old. He can't be effective. They have to get another leader. And if you can get a separate Palestinian state out of this horrible situation, that will be really a significant achievement, and will make it much easier to maintain stability in the region.” ((NARRATOR)) Aaron David Miller worked for Republican and Democratic administrations for decades, often as part of the U.S. team trying to negotiate peace in the Middle East. He sees more continuity than change in U.S.-Israeli relations, especially with President Joe Biden in the White House. [[Radio Intro: Aaron David Miller is a Senior Fellow for American Statecraft at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. He spoke to VOA via Zoom.]] ((Aaron David Miller, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace)) ((Zoom)) “For Joe Biden, alone among modern American presidents, he considers himself literally part of the Israeli story. His relationship with Israeli prime ministers and other leaders goes back decades. He insisted on going into a war zone when this crisis first broke.” ((NARRATOR)) Biden embraced Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu just days after members of the U.S-designated terrorist group Hamas killed 1,200 Israelis and took more than 200 others hostage in the brutal October 7th attack. He has repeatedly said the United States will always be there for Israel. But in two months, Israel has pounded the Hamas-run Gaza Strip, displacing at least 2 million Palestinians, wounding more than 50,000 people and killing thousands more in the bloodiest campaign in the decades-long conflict. Biden recently told an audience of political donors that Israel is losing support from other countries because of its "indiscriminate" bombing of Gaza, and that Netanyahu should change his hardline government. ((NARRATOR)) In New York and other cities, thousands of Americans have taken to the streets to protest the killing of Palestinian civilians in Israel’s offensive against Hamas. Some White House and State Department staff also have strong feelings about the conflict, with some signing letters of protest and even resigning from the administration. [[radio: Elizabeth Shackelford is a former career diplomat who wrote a book about her experiences called “The Dissent Channel.” She is now a senior fellow at The Chicago Council on Global Affairs.]] ((Elizabeth Shackelford, The Chicago Council on Global Affairs)) ((Zoom)) “People on the inside of the State Department have been watching our policy towards Israel for many years — for decades, in some cases — and we've largely had unconditional military support for Israel. So, there's an understanding on the inside that we have not used tools that we have available using the leverage that we have with our military support, to press Israel to do more to address the Palestinian issue.” ((NARRATOR)) And while many have demonstrated against Israel’s offensive, thousands of Americans also turned out in Washington in mid-November to support Israel and condemn antisemitism. Cindy Saine, VOA News, the State Department
- Network VOA
- Location (dateline) State Department
- Embargo Date December 13, 2023 18:29 EST
- Byline Cindy Saine
- Brand / Language Service Voice of America - English