The Biden administration has asked Israel to reconsider its plans to invade the Gaza Strip with a full scale assault and to instead pursue more limited strikes on Hamas targets and military infrastructure, the Washington Post reported.
The move comes in the wake of U.N. General Assembly vote overwhelmingly approving calls for a ceasefire and "humanitarian truce" in the roughly three-weeks-long conflict. One-hundred twenty nations on Friday voted in favor of the resolution, while 45 abstained, and 14 voted against it, including Israel and the U.S. Hostilities have persisted since an Oct. 7 Hamas terrorist raid on Israeli border towns in which its forces took roughly 200 hostages and killed more than 1,000 civilians.
Washington's pivot toward a limited campaign stems from both the administration's concerns about global reaction to such an invasion and genuine concerns if an Israeli offensive would succeed in eliminating Hamas, the outlet reported, citing administration officials.
The tactical operation Washington has proposed, they say, would limit the impact on civilians in Gaza, minimize disruptions to humanitarian aid, and be the most conducive approach to securing the release of hostages.
"They have clearly shifted from an initial 'We have your back; we’ll do whatever you want' to now 'You really need to rethink your strategy.' And they’re doing it in a careful way," one source told the outlet.
Publicly, Biden has vowed strong support for Israel amid the conflict and has asked Congress to approve $14.3 billion in aid to Jerusalem, though he has attempted to link those funds to renewed support for Ukraine in its war with Russia.
The revelations come as Israel launched its second major ground raid on the Hamas-controlled territory on Friday.
