The News
The US criticized Israel for a “horrifying” airstrike in northern Gaza and over the country’s ban of the UN’s main Palestinian aid agency, illustrating the increasingly public gulf between the two allies.
More than 90 people — including at least 20 children — were reported killed in an Israeli attack on a residential building in the Gazan town of Beit Lahiya.
Washington’s concern over Israeli lawmakers’ move to ban the UN agency, meanwhile, comes amid mounting international opprobrium over the war in Gaza: South Africa this week filed documents with the International Court of Justice offering “facts and evidence” it said substantiated its charge that Israel is committing genocide in the territory.
SIGNALS
Banning UN aid agency leaves scant support for Palestinians
The Knesset’s decision to ban UNRWA from Israel comes at a moment when aid “could not be more urgently needed” in Gaza, where the majority of the 2.2 million population faces acute malnutrition, The New York Times reported. UNRWA supports more than six million Palestinian refugees in the region, and the US State Department said that “there’s nobody that can replace them right now in the middle of the crisis.” Several European countries also condemned the ban in a joint statement. The decision marks the culmination of the Israeli government’s long-running animosity toward the agency, which it has accused of harboring Hamas members: In August, the UN agency fired nine staff members after an investigation found they may have been involved in Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel.
US presidential candidates present two different futures for Middle East
The outcome of the US presidential election will determine the future of US-Middle East relations. Former president Donald Trump has repeatedly said he backs Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, reportedly telling him to “do what you have to do,” in a recent call. His campaign has sought to portray Trump as the peace candidate, although his eventual approach toward Israel or the Middle East remains unclear. Vice President Kamala Harris is expected to largely adopt the stance of her boss, Joe Biden, if she wins the White House, although she has sought to distinguish herself as more pragmatic — and been more vocal in her empathy and outrage toward the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.