The United States decided to bring Qatar in to participate in the construction and management of the temporary pier in Gaza, that will bring humanitarian aid into the Strip, despite Israel's objections. "Qatari involvement in a port in Gaza would be a dream come true for Hamas and it is too bad that Israel missed the gravity of the situation in time to stop it," according to an Israeli official.
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U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken participated in a video conference with his counterparts from Cyprus, Qatar, Britain, the UAE, the European Union and the United Nations, to coordinate the maritime corridor to be used to bring humanitarian aid into the Strip. Surprisingly, no Israeli representative participated in the meeting, but Qatari Minister of State Mohammed bin Abdulaziz bin Saleh al-Khulaifi attended.
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Construction of a pier to receive humanitarian aid on the Gaza shore
(Photo: U.S. Army)
"The Americans are rushing ahead," the senior Israeli official said. "There is coordination between Israel and Cyprus and there is the American initiative to establish the temporary pier and its management and they decided to include Qatar despite our reservations. One can only hope this would be ultimately reversed. Qatar must not have a hold on any port in Gaza."
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee on Tuesday that only he can stand up to the Americans. "We have to say 'no' to the U.S., and anyone who is unable to do so cannot be prime minister," he said in a jab at war cabinet member Benny Gantz, who visited Washington recently, and who according to polling is likely to beat Netanyahu with a huge majority if elections were held now.
The prime minister told the lawmakers in the committee that if he would have agreed to discuss a two-state solution and would have backed down from his intentions to launch an offensive on Rafah, he could be enjoying a great relationship with Washington. "Any other prime minister would have done that and would have gained the Americans but lost Israel and the battle against Hamas," he said.
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Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee chair Yuli Edlestein
(Photo: Knesset Spokesperson)
But the United States is not the only country acting against Israel's positions. On Tuesday, Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly said Ottawa will stop future arms exports to Israel after Canada’s parliament passed a non-binding motion to do so.
The Canadian Jewish community denounced the decision claiming it undermines Israel's right to defend itself against Hamas.