Et tu, Joe? For many months, Benjamin Netanyahu has shrugged off international criticism of Israel, secure in the knowledge that the president of America had offered ironclad support. If you have the White House behind you, who cares about South Africa or the students of Columbia University?
But even the Biden administration has its limits. The Netanyahu government’s determination to press ahead with a full-scale attack on the Gazan town of Rafah has finally prompted the US to halt some of its military aid to Israel.
Netanyahu has responded to the US decision with bravado and defiance. Israel looks likely to move forward with its attack on Rafah, using its already formidable arsenal. The Israeli prime minister says that no outside power can prevent his nation from defending itself, as it sees fit. Israel, Netanyahu insists, “will stand alone” if necessary.