US, Israel discuss civilian harm in Gaza amid humanitarian concerns

WASHINGTON

The State Department said Thursday that the US has engaged in discussions with Israel in the last week about setting up an initial meeting to discuss incidents of civilian harm in the Gaza Strip.

"The first meeting has not yet taken place, but we're hoping to land that meeting," State Department spokesman Matthew Miller told reporters.

The meeting was requested in an Oc.t 13 letter to Israel.

Miller noted that Israel has taken several steps to address the humanitarian situation in Gaza, including opening new crossings to allow aid entry. He emphasized, however, that the efforts fall short if the increased assistance is not moving through the routes.

"What we want to see over the coming days and coming weeks is to see these new routes actually have more humanitarian assistance delivered over that so we have seen a bit of an uptick in the number of trucks,” he said..

In the Oct. 13 letter sent by Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin to their Israeli counterparts, the US urged Israel to improve Gaza's humanitarian conditions within 30 days or face consequences.

Asked if the Biden administration would consider halting weapons transfers to Israel if it does not meet the demands outlined in the letter, Miller refused to speculate about the next steps but added, "We are going to follow the law."

Under the US Foreign Assistance Act, military aid must be restricted if a country, like Israel, obstructs the entry of US humanitarian aid or violates international law unless national security exemptions apply.

Miller added that the US would continue to pursue an end to the wars in Gaza and Lebanon, and push for a surge of humanitarian assistance into Gaza until the end of President Joe Biden's term on Jan. 20.

Asked about the possibility of conflicting policy goals between the current administration and the incoming administration of Donald Trump on the Middle East, Miller said, "I think it’s important to remember with respect to our policy in the Middle East, with respect to all of our policies, that there is one president at a time, and Joe Biden is the president."

On the prospects of a cease-fire in Gaza, Miller said the US will continue to push for a cease-fire and find a way to end the war, but it takes the parties being willing to engage in all those efforts.