US Ambassador to Israel Thwarted Messages Warning of a 'Catastrophic Wasteland' in Gaza

SadaNews - In early 2024, employees of the U.S. Agency for International Development warned senior officials in the administration of former President Joe Biden that northern Gaza was at risk of becoming a "catastrophic wasteland" due to severe shortages of food and medical aid, according to the news agency "Reuters."

Three months after the attack led by Hamas on October 7, 2023, and Israel's incursion into the Gaza Strip, the internal message detailed horrific scenes observed by UN employees who visited the area on a two-phase humanitarian fact-finding mission in January and February.

The employees spoke of seeing a human thigh bone and other bones on the roads, abandoned bodies in cars, and reported a "catastrophic shortage of humanitarian needs, especially relating to food and clean drinking water".

However, according to interviews with four former officials and documents reviewed by "Reuters", U.S. Ambassador to Israel Jack Lew and his deputy Stephanie Hallett prevented the wider dissemination of the telegram within the U.S. government because they believed it lacked balance.

Official Acknowledgment of Gaza's Situation

Six former U.S. officials told "Reuters" that the telegram issued in February 2024 was one of five telegrams sent in the first part of that year documenting the rapid deterioration of health, nutrition, hygiene conditions, and the collapse of the social system in Gaza as a consequence of the Israeli war in the territory.

"Reuters" reviewed one of those telegrams. The other four, which were also blocked by Lew and Hallett due to concerns about balance, were described by four former officials.

Three former U.S. officials stated that the details contained in them were unusually shocking and would have drawn the attention of senior officials if the message had circulated widely within the Biden administration.

They added that this would also have led to increased scrutiny of the national security memorandum issued by Biden that month, which linked the provision of intelligence information and U.S. arms to Israel's commitment to international law.

Andrew Hall, then Vice President of Information at the U.S. Agency for International Development for the West Bank and Gaza Strip, stated: "Although the telegrams were not the only means of providing humanitarian information... they would have represented an acknowledgment from the ambassador of the reality of the situation in Gaza."

The U.S. embassy in Jerusalem oversaw the drafting and distribution of most telegrams related to Gaza, including those received from other embassies in the region.

A former senior official stated that Ambassador Lew and his deputy Hallett frequently told the leadership of the U.S. Agency for International Development that the telegrams contained information that media outlets were already widely disseminating.

Former Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Biden representatives did not respond to requests for comment regarding the information that the telegrams never reached the senior leadership of the U.S. government.

The Gaza war erupted after the attacks led by Hamas on October 7, 2023, which resulted in the deaths of over 1,250 people. According to Palestinian Health Ministry data, the death toll in Gaza now exceeds 71,000.

Former President Donald Trump announced his peace plan for Gaza in the Oval Office last September while Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stood beside him, but fighting in the territory did not cease.

According to Palestinian Health Ministry data, around 481 people have been killed since the ceasefire agreement came into effect in Gaza.

The Biden administration's support for Israel during the war has caused a deep rift within the Democratic Party and remains an unresolved issue for political party candidates.

According to a poll conducted by "Reuters" and "Ipsos" last August, over 80 percent of Democrats believe that the Israeli military response in Gaza was excessive and that the United States should assist the people in the sector who are facing the threat of famine.