11/14/2023-|Last update: 11/14/202304:01 AM (Mecca time)
CNN said that US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken acknowledged the existence of differences within the State Department regarding President Joe Biden’s administration’s approach to supporting Israel in its war on Gaza, in an email to employees yesterday, Monday.
His letter to staff, sent in the wake of his recent trips to the region, comes amid growing anger and opposition, not just from staff at the State Department but within the broader Biden administration.
CNN reported last week that hundreds of employees at the US Agency for International Development signed an open letter calling for a ceasefire, and there are reports of a “memorandum of opposition” within the State Department.
Last month, a State Department official resigned publicly in protest against the administration’s policy on the Israeli war in Gaza.
“I know that for many of you, the suffering resulting from this crisis has a deeply personal impact, and the pain that accompanies seeing daily images of infants, children, the elderly, women, and other civilians suffering in this crisis,” Blinken wrote in his email, according to CNN. “The crisis is painful. I feel it myself.”
The chief American diplomat noted that “some people in the department may disagree with the methods we are taking or have views on what we can do better.”
Blinken stated that his ministry is holding forums and “frank discussions” in its branches around the world, and stressed that Washington’s comprehensive goal is to end this terrible conflict as quickly as possible, while standing by Israel’s right, from his point of view.
At a State Department press conference on Monday, department spokesman Matthew Miller noted that the department includes people with diverse viewpoints, and that “one of our strengths as an organization is that we have this diversity of viewpoints and that we welcome people to make those viewpoints known.”
He revealed that Blinken met with a number of people from all ranks and from different offices in the ministry, to hear exactly what they think about our policy, whether with regard to Israel and its conflict with (the Islamic Resistance Movement) Hamas, or with regard to other organizations.
Axios revealed an internal memo in the US State Department opposing President Biden, accusing him of “spreading misleading information” about the war on Gaza, and considering that Israel is committing “war crimes” in the Strip, according to a copy of the memo obtained by the American website.
The memorandum – signed by 100 employees of the State Department and the US Agency for International Development – indicated that Biden’s support for Israel made him “complicit in genocide” in Gaza, revealing the depth of divisions within the US administration.
It considered that the Israeli measures – which included cutting off electricity, limiting humanitarian supplies, and carrying out attacks that led to the displacement of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians – constitute “war crimes and crimes against humanity under international law.”
Since the beginning of the war, Washington has repeatedly affirmed its support for Israel and sent aircraft carriers to the region and military equipment to Tel Aviv, in addition to allocating billions of dollars in financial aid.
For the 39th day, the Israeli army is waging a devastating war on Gaza, leaving 11,240 martyrs, including 4,630 children and 3,130 women, as well as 29,000 injured, most of them children and women, according to official Palestinian sources on Monday evening.
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2023-11-14 00:15:45
