LONDON: The Biden administration’s policy on Gaza has endangered US national security, 12 former officials have warned.
The group, who have variously resigned over the US government’s handling of the war, added that the president’s stance has “put a target on America’s back.”
In a joint statement, the 12 — including former military and White House staff, and a Department of the Interior official who only resigned on July 2, said: “America’s diplomatic cover for, and continuous flow of arms to Israel, has ensured our undeniable complicity in the killings and forced starvation of a besieged Palestinian population in Gaza.”
The statement added that Washington’s stance, including continued military assistance to Israel, amounts to a “failed policy” that has threatened the safety of both Israelis and Palestinians, helped to further destabilize the region, limited free speech and damaged US credibility.
“Our nation’s political and economic interests across the region have also been significantly harmed, while US credibility has been deeply undermined worldwide at a time we need it most, when the world is characterized by a new era of strategic competition,” the statement continued.
The State Department said in April that it welcomed feedback from staff through “appropriate channels,” and that Washington had “been clear at the highest levels publicly and privately with Israel that it must abide by international humanitarian law.”
That came in the aftermath of an Israeli strike on an aid convoy in Gaza that killed seven charity workers earlier that month.
Israel’s military campaign in Gaza has so far killed more than 37,900 Palestinians in the enclave since Oct. 8, according to local officials.
