File Photo: U.S. soldiers stand next to a Patriot anti-missile battery (not seen) west of Jerusalem, during “Austere Challenge 2012”, a joint Israeli-hosted exercise October 23, 2012. REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun
Fri 29 March 2024:
The Pentagon is in early “conversations” on potential plans to fund a peacekeeping force in the Gaza Strip, Politico reports, citing two Defense Department officials and two other US officials.
According to the report, Biden administration officials are in preliminary talks on security and stability in post-war Gaza and are considering a number of options, “including a proposal for the Pentagon to help fund either a multinational force or a Palestinian peacekeeping team.”
No US troops would be involved, the officials tell Politico. Pentagon funds could go toward the needs of the force and complement funding from other countries, the report says.
A senior administration official tells Politico: “We are working with partners on various scenarios for interim governance and security structures in Gaza once the crisis recedes. We’ve had a number of conversations with both the Israelis and our partners about key elements for the day after in Gaza when the time is right.”
Asked about reports that the US is in talks to advance a peacekeeping force in Gaza, US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller declines to comment on the private discussions.
However, he says, “The work we have been doing with our Arab partners is to put together a concrete proposal of what post-conflict governance would look like, both as it pertains to security in Gaza, the reconstruction of Gaza and a political path forward for the Palestinian people that answers their very legitimate aspirations.”
“As part of that, we have had discussions with Saudi Arabia about how to further integrate Israel with its neighbors, including with Saudi Arabia. That work continues, but at some point, our goal is to have something to put on the table for Israel to look,” he adds.
US general says Israel has not received all weapons it wanted
The top general in the US says Israel has not received every single weapon it has asked for during its war on Gaza, partly because US president Joe Biden did not wish to provide at least some of them.
“Although we’ve been supporting them with capability, they’ve not received everything they’ve asked for,” said General Charles Brown, the chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff.
“Some of that is because they’ve asked for stuff that we either don’t have the capacity to provide or not willing to provide, not right now,” he added while speaking at military-focused event.
“It is a constant dialogue.”
The US and President Biden have drawn sharp criticism both domestically and internationally for continuing to supply weapons to the Israeli army during its campaign in Gaza, which has killed at least 32,552 Palestinians as of today, according to the Gaza Health Ministry.
SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES
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