The macabre US reassurances approving of Israel’s genocide

US Ambassador to Israel Jack Lew spoke in terms of protecting genocidal action and complicity last Sunday when he explained that, “fundamentally, nothing has changed in the basic relationship” between the US and Israel. They are words which Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu didn’t really need to hear, of course, but which nonetheless affirm the supremacy of the Zionist narrative over international law as far as Washington is concerned.

Lew reminded the world that only one arms shipment was delayed by the US, strategically prior to the State Department’s report which was riddled with — no doubt — intentional rhetorical inconsistencies. The US could not deny its weapons were used by Israel to commit genocide in Gaza, but adding the Zionist narrative as background as to why the weapons were used would, of course, justify future arms shipments.

All in all, the report rested on building and dismantling truths about Israel’s genocide, because when it comes to Israel, even truth is subject to possibility.

“What the president said is that he doesn’t think it is a good idea to have a massive ground campaign in a heavily populated area,” Lew offered by way of explanation.” But he specifically said that 2,000-pound (900-kilogram) bombs shouldn’t be used in that setting.” So far, Lew added, Israel’s military action in Rafah has not “crossed over into the area where our disagreements lie.” But of course, there is no area of disagreement between Israel and the US. Not even in genocide. Indeed, such macabre reassurances actually express US approval of Israeli genocide.

It is even worse that Lew is not downplaying Biden’s halting of arms deliveries, but that the reality behind the glossy veneer added for media and public consumption remains the same. This was despite the fact that much of the purported inconclusiveness of the State Department’s report, which was published after Biden’s symbolic and meaningless gesture, clearly indicated a lack of cooperation from the Israeli authorities to establish whether or not international law violations have been committed. Since, in American eyes, Israel’s actions don’t speak for themselves, despite ample evidence, and since Israel as usual refuses to cooperate, the US sees no reason to permanently withhold weapons shipments to the apartheid state.

Let us not forget that the US has invaded countries and created failed states based on bogus evidence.

“Bringing democracy” was enough justification. When it comes to Israel, however, evidence is never enough, even though dead Palestinian bodies keep piling up; and even though Israel’s army openly brags about the bombing and mocks Palestinians for not being able to live among the devastation created by Israeli settler-colonial entity. Nothing but absolute political power can allow Israel to openly commit genocide in Gaza while the US says there is insufficient evidence.

Of course, Rafah will not bring any disagreements between Israel and the US. Just as Israel wants to see its genocidal plan through, so does the US. In much the same way, the UN was never going to back down after the 1947 Partition Plan. Why not, instead, create a day of solidarity for Palestinians, in return for forcing them to become refugees, ethnically cleansed, and now facing genocide for months? The UN sustained Israel through resolutions calling it to account; the US sustains Israel with weapons and diplomatic backing. More of the same, day in, day out. It would be a bland concoction, were it not for the fact that more of the same means more Palestinians killed by Israel, just for the sake of protecting a colonial project that should have never come into being in the first place.

The macabre US reassurances approving of Israel’s genocide