Israel’s war in Gaza may take „more than several months”, Israel’s defence minister has told US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan.
Mr Sullivan arrived in Israel earlier on Thursday to meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other top officials, reports the BBC.
Earlier this week, Joe Biden said Israel’s „indiscriminate bombing” of Gaza was costing it support globally.The UN warned of a dire humanitarian situation in Gaza.
It’s no coincidence that Sullivan’s visit to Israel comes just days after Biden said that Israel was „starting to lose” international support because of the „indiscriminate bombing that takes place” in Gaza.
On the same day, Prime Minister Netanyahu said in a statement that Israel had „the full backing” of the US, which had blocked „international pressure to stop the war”.
Citing two unnamed US officials, CBS reports that Israeli officials have told the US that the current phase of military operations would last two or three more weeks, but would be followed by a prolonged campaign of targeted strikes aimed at Hamas leadership targets.
The Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza has said more than 18,400 people have been killed by Israeli bombing since 7 October, when a Hamas attack into Israel left about 1,200 people dead.
At a news conference in Geneva on Thursday, the head of the UN’s agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) said that conditions were becoming increasingly difficult, both for Palestinian civilians in Gaza and those who have successfully crossed into Egypt.
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