The US administration of President Joe Biden has sent a letter to the Israeli government demanding action on the humanitarian situation in Gaza, saying aid is “down more than 50% from its peak,” according to a State Department spokesperson.
Israel increased the level of humanitarian assistance to Gaza following a call from Secretary of State Antony Blinken in April, but those levels have “not been sustained” in the past few months, State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said. characterized the current level on Tuesday. “Very, very low.”
Miller said the letter was prompted by the fact that the United States had engaged in intense talks with Israel, conveying its concerns about aid, but “didn’t think those concerns would ultimately be resolved.”
Possible consequences unknown: Miller would not say what the consequences could be if Israel did not comply, other than to say there would be implications for U.S. law. .
Miller said that in May, the Biden administration released a report to Congress that found Israel did not violate international law in the Gaza war, and that Blinken’s assessment was based on “the changes we have introduced so far and the international This is based on the fact that the law has been strengthened.” Level of humanitarian assistance. ”
But these elevated levels need to be maintained, he added. The United States wanted to be clear with Israel about what changes were needed before changing its assessment overnight, which could trigger a change in U.S. policy.
Miller said the 30-day deadline is not affected by the upcoming November presidential election.
“The humanitarian situation on the ground is so dire that we have made it clear that we want to see change in a short period of time, but we will take some time to address the various issues and find ways to improve the level of track. ‘It’s appropriate to give them food, water and medicine levels back to acceptable levels,’ Miller said.
