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Will the U.S. Have Israel's Back If It Needs to Preemptively Strike Iran?

(Times of Israel) Amb. Michael Oren - With Iran and its proxies threatening to launch a massive attack against Israel, the Americans are poised to help defend our skies. But will the U.S. stand behind Israel if it decides to strike preemptively? The indications are by no means encouraging. U.S. policy today is almost unrecognizable from what it was on Oct. 7. In the immediate aftermath of the Hamas attack, President Biden offered Israel immediate and unlimited support to fulfill its twin goals of rescuing the hostages and destroying Hamas. Biden dismissed Hamas's casualty figures as exaggerated and stressed the difficulties Israel faced in fighting an enemy hiding behind its own civilians. Two months later, much of the initial American position had changed. The administration began claiming that "too many Palestinians had been killed," that Israel was bombing indiscriminately in Gaza, and that its reaction to the Hamas attacks was "over the top." President Biden went from impugning Hamas statistics to citing them repeatedly. Soon, the supply of American munitions to the IDF was delayed. Recent weeks have seen yet another major shift in American policy. No longer seeking the destruction of Hamas or even guaranteeing that it will never be able to launch another Oct. 7, the White House wants to secure the release of the hostages and put an end to the war. These goals are to be achieved at almost any price, including Hamas's survival and Israel's forfeiture of control over the Philadelphi route between Egypt and Gaza. Biden's position stands at odds with the Israeli government's longstanding determination to prevent Hamas from once again smuggling arms from Egypt into Gaza and to eliminate the terrorists as a political and military force. For all its dangers, the present crisis offers a unique opportunity to deter Iran and strengthen the regional alliance against it. America can emerge with its reputation as a reliable ally and formidable superpower restored by staying the course and acting in effective concert with Israel against Iran. The writer is a former Israeli ambassador to the U.S. and Deputy Minister for Diplomacy.
2024-08-08 00:00:00
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