The US intelligence community considered that “Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s ability to remain a leader is in jeopardy,” according to an annual unclassified assessment of international threats issued by the US intelligence community.
“Netanyahu’s ability to remain a leader as well as his ruling coalition composed of right-wing and religious parties that have pursued hardline policies on Palestinian and security issues may be at risk,”
the assessment said.
The assessment issued on Monday stated, “The feeling of mistrust in Netanyahu’s ability to rule has increased among Israelis compared to its already high levels before the war.”
The Joe Biden administration is pressuring Israel to allow more aid into Gaza, and said that the Israeli operation in the Rafah area would be a “red line.”
In an interview over the weekend, US President Joe Biden said that he would like to return to Israel and deliver a speech before its parliament (the Knesset).
Netanyahu: Biden agreed that Israel must destroy Hamas… and there is no “middle way.”
Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, said that US President, Joe Biden, agreed that Israel “must destroy Hamas and that there is no “middle path,” during an interview with Fox TV, on Monday.
Netanyahu also added that Israel must first enable the civilian population to leave Rafah in a safe manner before entering it. He added: “We agree with that, and this is what we intend to do.”
During an interview with MSNBC Following his State of the Union address, President Biden said Netanyahu is “hurting Israel more than helping it,” by ignoring all the “innocent lives lost” in Gaza.
Over the weekend, Netanyahu gave interviews to several media outlets and said he would go ahead with a military attack on Rafah, where 1.5 million displaced Palestinians are located.
Israeli officials warned that an attack on Rafah during the month of Ramadan should not be ruled out.
More than a million internally displaced Palestinians live in Rafah, the southernmost part of the Gaza Strip, according to international relief agencies.
Washington does not expect an Israeli military operation in Rafah at the beginning of Ramadan
Two US officials said, Biden administration does not expect Israeli forces to expand their military operations imminently in Rafah, with the beginning of the month of Ramadan on Monday for most
Muslims.
The US President said: “We cannot see another 30,000 Palestinians die.”
As of the end of this week, the Biden administration has yet to see any kind of humanitarian or evacuation plans by the Israeli government, which the two US officials said is seeking to ensure the safety of civilians in Rafah before launching a military operation there.
More than a million people are crowded into a sprawling, crowded tent city on the Egyptian border in Rafah, which is the only safe space for Palestinians fleeing northern and central Gaza.
Families are already living with severe shortages of food, water, medicine and shelter, with the daily threat of death surrounding them.
