On Tuesday, US President Joe Biden made a series of damning admissions regarding the ongoing genocide in Gaza that makes clear the United States is consciously aiding and abetting what it knows to be war crimes by the Israeli government.
At a campaign event, Biden stated that Israel is carrying out “indiscriminate bombing” of the civilian population of Gaza. He subsequently added that Israel’s Minister of National Security “Ben-Gvir and company and the new folks, they… They not only want to have retribution, which they should for what the Palestinians--Hamas--did, but against all Palestinians.”
Biden’s statements on Tuesday will be “Exhibit A” in any war crimes trial, effectively constituting an admission that the United States is consciously aiding and abetting war crimes by Israel.
Asked by a reporter, “Does the President believe, based on those comments, that Israel’s conduct in this war thus far has been in accordance with international law?” Kirby said the opposite of Biden’s statement that Israel is carrying out “indiscriminate bombing.” He maintained, “we know they’ve stated their intent to reduce civilian casualties. And they have acted on that … by publishing a map online.”
https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2023/12/14/lqgq-d14.html
National Security Council spokesman John Kirby speaks at a press briefing at the White House in Washington, Wednesday, Dec. 13, 2023. After Biden admitted that Israel is carrying out "indiscriminate bombing," Kirby said "We're going to continue to support" Israel and "they have every right to defend themselves" (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik).
On Tuesday, US President Joe Biden made a series of damning admissions regarding the ongoing genocide in Gaza that makes clear the United States is consciously aiding and abetting what it knows to be war crimes by the Israeli government.
At a campaign event, Biden stated that Israel is carrying out “indiscriminate bombing” of the civilian population of Gaza. He subsequently added that Israel’s Minister of National Security “Ben-Gvir and company and the new folks, they… They not only want to have retribution, which they should for what the Palestinians—Hamas—did, but against all Palestinians.”
In other words, Biden admitted that Israel is not making efforts to limit civilian casualties and explained that the reason is that the Minister of National Security is deliberately seeking to carry out retribution, i.e., collective punishment—against all Palestinian civilians, including unarmed women and children.
The American president has thus admitted to arming, funding and politically supporting the intentional murder of civilian members of a targetted ethnic group—i.e., genocide. Significantly, even in light of these admissions, Biden reiterated that the United States would continue its unconditional funding and arming of the Israeli military, declaring that “in the meantime, none of it is going to walk away from providing Israel what they need to defend themselves and to finish the job.”
Indiscriminate attacks are prohibited by the Geneva Conventions Additional Protocol I of 1977. They constitute a war crime under the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, and the perpetrators can be prosecuted and held responsible in international and domestic courts.
Significantly, on multiple occasions, the Biden administration has made clear that the United States has set no limits on the extent to which Israel may target civilians. On November 7, asked whether it is “still the case” that the administration has “no red lines” regarding civilian deaths, National Security Council spokesman John Kirby replied, “That is still the case.”
Biden’s statements on Tuesday will be “Exhibit A” in any war crimes trial, effectively constituting an admission that the United States is consciously aiding and abetting war crimes by Israel.
In a press briefing Wednesday, Kirby and State Department spokesman Matthew Miller went into damage control mode, attempting to walk back the president’s statements, with Miller effectively declaring that Biden’s admission did not represent the formal position of the US government. “We have not made a formal determination to that question,” Miller said.
Asked by a reporter, “Does the President believe, based on those comments, that Israel’s conduct in this war thus far has been in accordance with international law?” Kirby said the opposite of Biden’s statement that Israel is carrying out “indiscriminate bombing.” He maintained, “we know they’ve stated their intent to reduce civilian casualties. And they have acted on that … by publishing a map online.”