This past Monday, President Joe Biden told reporters that he had hope Israel and Hamas would reach a ceasefire agreement by the following Monday (March 4th). Biden’s remark was likely a well-timed attempt to influence the Michigan primary, which took place the following day. Michigan, which is a November swing state, has a large Arab-American population, many of whom have protested Biden’s current policy by urging voters to pick “uncommitted” in the primary polls (CNN - Biden). Israel and Hamas officials, however, played down such a possibility of a ceasefire, finding the President’s remarks to be premature. The head of Hamas’ political division in Gaza, Basem Naim, said that Biden’s claim “did not match the reality on the ground.” Anonymous Israeli officials felt the same, stating that Hamas was continuing to push “excessive demands,” limiting the likelihood of a ceasefire (Guardian).
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President Joe Biden talks on Late Night with Seth Meyers (https://www.cnn.com/2024/02/27/politics/joe-biden-israel-international-support/index.html) |
The current draft of the proposal contains a 40-day pause of all military activity and a 10:1 exchange of Palestinian prisoners for Israeli hostages, resulting in 40 Israeli hostages being freed and 400 Palestinian prisoners. The deal would also allow 500 aid trucks to enter the besieged territory each day, up from below 100 currently, and bakeries and hospitals in Gaza would be repaired (Guardian).
The unofficial deadline for this deal is the start of Ramadan, which is expected to be March 10th (AP). When asked, Biden stated, “Ramadan is coming up, and there’s been an agreement by the Israelis that they would not engage in activities during Ramadan as well, in order to give us time to get all the hostages out.” Tensions in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict almost always inflame during Ramadan, which is only expected to be more extreme given the current state of the conflict.
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| Displaced Palestinians wait to receive food at a tent camp in Rafah. (https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/feb/27/hamas-and-israel-pour-cold-water-on-bidens-hopes-of-imminent-ceasefire#img-1) |
The day after Biden’s interview, the top US humanitarian aid official announced an additional $53 million in humanitarian aid, primarily to support food assistance (CNN - USAID). On top of this, they have called for even more aid, as “more than two million people in Gaza are at “imminent risk” of famine” (CNN - USAID).
Of course, additional aid does not come from anywhere. In every economic decision, there are trade-offs, and aid to foreign conflicts, such as in Gaza, is no exception. Instead of spending the $53 million on aid, Congress could direct this money towards a domestic issue, such as an affordable housing plan, or could reduce taxes. It is therefore the job of policymakers to judge each trade-off, and make a decision based on which one would be most beneficial. This is where the importance of ethics comes into play with normative statements: the decision of whether or not to fund aid to Gaza does not come just from an economic standpoint, but also an ethical one, as this aid is entirely humanitarian and is meant to reduce the suffering in the region.
In the case that a ceasefire was near, I would not support the direction of funds towards Gaza until the ceasefire had been enacted, as only then would the aid be able to have the most impact without interference. However, given the current circumstances described by Israel and Hamas officials and the oncoming violence to be expected during Ramadan, I believe that policy makers made the right decision to send aid at this time, as there is no foreseeable end to the suffering of those in the Gaza region.
2 comments:
I agree that providing aid when it is most useful is the most efficient use of our money, but if the ceasefire is not on its way soon, I can understand politicians' desire to still help where they can in the meantime.
I'm disappointed in Biden for announcing an upcoming ceasefire when that has not yet been established. While I understand the election is coming up and he wants to inspire hope and rally support around him, I don't like the idea that politicians push for a lot of change before. It feels performative.
I additionally dislike the idea that the US is meddling in affairs between Israel and Hamas. I understand Biden's desire to help the countries find a compromise, but to speak for them saying there will be a ceasefire and both Israel and Hamas officials disagreeing is not a good look.
I think that if both Israel and Hamas agree on a ceasefire everything would be easier but its not that easy and it's not that possible with everything that has happened. The tension just keepsmraising within the traingle (US, Israel, and Ukraine), even though President Biden is trying to motivate people to keep pushing through on both ends, saying that a ceasfire was on its way when it really wasn't is the opposite of motivating people. Also the tension in the US has risen to the max after Aaron Bushnell set himself on fire outside an Israeli Embassy located in Washington DC on February 25th. He streamed his death on Twitch witch led to many people watching it and debating over the video on various social medias like TikTok(I learned about it throuhg that app). So I hope that the suffering comes to an end soon but from where all three contries stand it doesn't quite seem possible.
https://www.cnn.com/2024/02/25/politics/man-sets-himself-on-fire-israeli-embassy-washington-dc/index.html
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/feb/25/man-set-himself-on-fire-israel-embassy
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