Senior officials from the United States and Israel are scheduled to meet for the first time in early December under a newly established communication channel focused on addressing concerns over civilian casualties in Gaza. This was initiated following a request from Washington aimed at improving the handling of such sensitive matters during Israel’s ongoing military operations.

New Diplomatic Channel for Sensitive Issues

The decision to create a new diplomatic channel was made in response to a letter on October 13 from President Joe Biden’s administration, saying that the current communication channels are limited. In response, both countries agreed to set up a dedicated forum to discuss the impact of Israel’s actions in Gaza, particularly incidents involving U.S.-supplied weaponry.

State Department spokesman Matthew Miller confirmed that a meeting had been arranged for early December, although he would not say where. “The goal of the new channel is to collect more details on incidents involving civilian casualties from Israel’s use of US-supplied weapons in Gaza,” he noted.

Focus on U.S.-Supplied Weapons and Civilian Casualties

The U.S. government has been particularly interested in cases pertaining to weapons supplied to Israel by the U.S. “We take all the information we gather and feed it into our processes, both our policymaking procedures and the judgments that we have to make about potential violations of international humanitarian law,” Miller explained.

Miller would not commit to whether the new channel would speed up the U.S. assessments of possible international law breaches by Israel. He said that “hard assessment” work requires time, and he refused to say whether conclusions would be reached before Biden’s term ends Jan. 20.

 Biden’s Tightrope: Backing Israel and the Suspect Actions

Since the onset of the conflict in October 2023, when Hamas-led militants attacked Israel, President Biden has reiterated strong support for Israel’s right to defend itself. However, he has also voiced concerns over the conduct of Israel’s military response, particularly its impact on Palestinian civilians in Gaza.

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U.S. sources report that American officials have identified almost 500 potential cases of civilian casualties in Gaza since the war started on October 7, 2023. These are being assessed as part of a State Department mechanism set up to assess whether U.S.-supplied weapons have been used in conflict areas. This also includes recommendations for preventing civilian harm in the future.

The Assessment Procedure is still in place

While the review mechanism was designed to prevent hundreds of potential incidents of concern, no concrete actions have been taken yet by the State Department. The review mechanism is supposed to ensure military operations involving American-supplied weaponry remain adherent to international humanitarian standards, officials admitted that making fast determinations about ongoing conflicts can be complex.

Establishing this new channel marks a significant diplomatic effort by the Biden administration to balance its commitment to Israel with international and domestic pressure to address humanitarian concerns. While no timeline has been set for completing these assessments, it is envisioned that what will be laid out by December will form the basis of more detailed discussions on the actions of the Israeli military campaign in Gaza, and whether these are aimed at compliance with international law.

As the conflict continues, the administration’s efforts to ensure accountability and transparency in the use of U.S. military aid both domestically and internationally will be scrutinized. The outcome of the discussions within this newly formed channel can determine future U.S. policy on military support and humanitarian considerations within conflict zones.