United States failure to support a major military operation in Rafah won’t prevent Israel from conducting one, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told Blinken when the two men in Tel Aviv.
“There is no way for us to defeat Hamas without going into Rafah and eliminating the rest of the battalions there,” he said.
“I told him that I hope we will do it with the support of the USA, but if we have to - we will do it alone,” he added.
Netanyahu assured Blinken that he “greatly appreciates the fact that for more than five months we have been standing together in the war against Hamas.
“I also told him that we recognize the need to evacuate the civilian population from the war zones and of course also take care of the humanitarian needs and we are working to that end,” he said.
Blinken's statements against a Rafah operation
Blinken for his part issued very clear public statements against the operation during a joint press conference he gave in Cairo on Thursday, together with Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry.
“We’ve been very clear, President Biden has been very clear, that a major ground operation in Rafah would be a mistake and something that we can’t support.
“There is no place for the many civilians who are massed in Gaza – in Rafah, excuse me – to go to get out of harm’s way. And for those that would inevitably remain, it would be a humanitarian disaster,” he said.
Blinken met Friday with members of the war cabinet.
The two men also spoke as an Israeli delegation led by Israel and the US have been united in their belief that Hamas must be ousted from Gaza and removed from its governmental control of the enclave in light of its October 7 attack against the Jewish state.
But they have differed in their military approach, with the US insisting that an IDF military operation in Rafah, where over 1.3 million Palestinians are located, would lead to a humanitarian catastrophe.
Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer and National Security Adviser Tzachi Hanegbi are expected to lead a delegation to Washington next week to discuss the issue with the US.
The Biden administration is expected to explain that Hamas can be defeated through more limited targeted operations.
Netanyahu and Dermer have both said that this is incorrect, with the Strategic Affairs Minister stating that Rafah is so essential to defeating Hamas’s existential threat that Israel would risk international isolation to destroy the terror group.
The United States has also taken issue with Israel’s handling of humanitarian assistance to Gaza, warning that the IDF has not done enough to prevent a hunger crisis in the enclave.
The Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories said on Friday that seven million pounds of food had entered Gaza on Thursday.
Blinken’s visit comes as Mossad Chief David Barnea was in Doha for talks on a deal for the release of the remaining 134 hostages. The talks have been mediated by Qatar and Egypt, with support from the US. CIA Director William Burns is also in Qatar for those negotiations.
The deal is expected to see the release of some 40 hostages in exchange for a six-week pause to the war, which the US hopes to expand into a permanent ceasefire that would bring everyone home.
Minister Benny Gantz (National Unity) met with Blinken and reiterated his "profound appreciation for the continued support for Israel and deep commitment to Israel’s security," according to his spokesperson.
Gantz underscored that it was "imperative" to destroy Hamas in Gaza, including by going after them in Rafah, but stressed that Israel would continue "to enable humanitarian solutions to aid civilians in Gaza, while ensuring critical aid does not fall into the hands of Hamas."