When President Joe Biden asked Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday to dispatch a team of top Israeli officials to Washington, his hope was to preempt a large-scale ground invasion of Rafah, which the Biden administration believes would amount to a humanitarian catastrophe.
Whether the meeting, now likely to occur early next week, can accomplish that objective remains an open question. There were indications on Tuesday that – despite dire warnings Biden delivered to Netanyahu in a 45-minute telephone call a day earlier – the Israeli leader remained intent on entering the southern Gaza city, American urging notwithstanding.
That leaves Biden in a now-familiar, if uncomfortable, position: Having staked out a clear position on the invasion, it appears Netanyahu is poised to reject it out of hand.
“Out of respect for the president, we agreed on a way in which they can present us with their ideas, especially on the humanitarian side,” Netanyahu said Tuesday during a speech to the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee in the Knesset.
“However, I made it as clear as possible to the president that we are determined to complete the elimination of these battalions in Rafah, and there is no way to do this without a ground incursion,” he went on.
The invitation to Israeli officials for talks in Washington comes with certain risks for Biden, depending how Israel decides to proceed. On one hand, he could appear ineffective in the heat of a reelection run if Netanyahu decides to move ahead with a major ground invasion despite the White House’s warnings. On the other, providing Israel with clear alternatives — even if they are rejected — could distance the president from an eventual decision to launch a major offensive.
Some US officials told CNN they were not…
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