Does a Red Line for Rafah Even Exist?

Despite declaring attacks on Rafah as a "Red Line," the Biden Administration says Israel's attacks on Rafah killing 45 civilians including 32 children is not a deal breaker

President Biden made clear that invading Rafah was a Red Line he would not tolerate. Yet, as Israel continues to bombard Rafah, force its evacuation, and kill dozens of Palestinians, that alleged Red Line seems nowhere to be found and the White House says it has not yet been crossed. Here are the four facts that we cannot ignore if we are serious about protecting Palestinians from continued mass murder and suffering, and Israel is held accountable to international human rights law. Let’s Address This.

1. Israel is repeatedly bombing Rafah in violation of Biden’s Red Line, but to no avail from Biden to enforce his Red Line

On May 27, a horrifying Israeli attack on a Rafah tent camp killed 45 Palestinians, burning dozens of children to death, reducing them to ash. As Reuters reports:

Survivors said families were preparing to sleep when the strike hit the Tel Al-Sultan neighbourhood where thousands were sheltering after Israeli forces began a ground offensive in the east of Rafah over two weeks ago. "We were praying... and we were getting our children's beds ready to sleep. There was nothing unusual, then we heard a very loud noise, and fire erupted around us," said Umm Mohamed Al-Attar, a Palestinian mother in a red headscarf. "All the children started screaming... The sound was terrifying; we felt like the metal was about to collapse on us, and shrapnel fell into the rooms."

A designated area for displaced people burns after an Israeli strike, Rafah, southern Gaza, Palestine, May 26, 2024. (Reuters Photo)

Moreover, Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu and the Israeli military then gave conflicting accounts of what happened—with Netanyahu claiming it was an error and the Israeli military claiming it was planned and legitimate.

It’s anyone’s guess who is lying and who is telling the truth. What’s clear is the Israeli government’s inability to tell the truth further demonstrates why the United States and all UN members must stop arming the Israeli military and stop enabling these war crimes. Furthermore, apparently not content with the May 27th mass murder, the Israeli military then bombed and killed 21 more Palestinians on May 28th. Al Jazeera reports:

At least 21 people have been killed in Israeli attacks on a tent camp housing displaced families in al-Mawasi, near Gaza’s southern city of Rafah, according to Palestinian medical officials and the official Palestinian news agency, days after an Israeli strike on another camp drew global condemnation. At least 12 of those killed in the attacks in Rafah governorate on Tuesday were women.

Perhaps most egregious about these attacks—particularly for the attack that killed 32 children—is that Palestinians were in a designated safe zone. A safe zone they were only in because the Israeli military forced them to move to that area with the promise that they would not be bombed. To rewind, on May 7 I wrote:

…as NBC and NYT have documented, on more than 200 occasions the Israeli Military ordered Palestinian civilians to move to “safe zones” that would be protected from bombing—only to bomb those exact locations hours later with 2000 pound bombs. Such a horrific act committed more than 200 times is not an accident, it is policy. What assurance can Palestinians have that this forced movement to more concentrated parts of Rafah is not another such cruel and illegal ploy to maximize harm upon and death of Palestinians?

Israel’s horrific bombing answered that question. And the answer is: Palestinians can have no assurance that Israel will not bomb them, even in a safe zone, because the Israeli military has proven it cannot be trusted to uphold its word. And thus, by continuing to trust a government that clearly has no intention of being truthful, and not enforcing its Red Line, the United States continues to be complicit in these mass murders, and continues isolate itself on the global stage.

2. By continuing to defend Israel’s attacks on Rafah, the United States has become increasingly globally isolated

While reluctant for months, the Canadian government has now come out strong for ceasefire, especially after Israel’s barbaric assault on Rafah. Barron’s reports:

Canada is "horrified" by the deaths of civilians from an Israeli air strike on a camp housing displaced Palestinians in Rafah, Foreign Minister Melanie Joly said in a social media post on Monday, calling for an ceasefire. "The images coming out of Rafah are horrific and heartbreaking," Joly said in a separate statement in the House of Commons, adding: "The killing of innocent civilians is completely unacceptable. The level of human suffering is catastrophic. That is why we need an immediate ceasefire."

France and Germany have not only called for a ceasefire, but have publicly declared that Israel is violating international law and is committing war crimes. Germany has additionally confirmed they will arrest Netanyahu under its ICC obligations should the Israeli Prime Minister set foot in Germany.

Three more American allies—Ireland, Norway, and Spain—have called for ceasefire and affirmed Israel is committing war crimes, and as of May 28th, have joined more than two-thirds of UN members in recognizing Palestine as a sovereign State.

None of this bodes well for the United States and its international standing. It should be a red flag for President Biden to uphold his Red Line. Israel, meanwhile, is further validating the grave concerns of America’s closest allies in Europe, by surround Rafah with its tanks.

3. Israeli tanks are surrounding Rafah prepping for a ground invasion—what should President Biden do?

CNN reports eyewitness testimony of Israeli tanks surrounding and entering Rafah, preparing for a ground invasion—one that will surely lead to countless more Palestinian civilian deaths:

Israel’s tanks were seen in central Rafah on Tuesday for the first time since its military entered Gaza’s southernmost city earlier this month, two eyewitnesses told CNN, signaling a new phase in its offensive despite mounting global pressure. They arrive two days after a strike on a Rafah camp killed dozens of displaced Palestinians on Sunday and as the international community urges Israel to stop its assault on the city.

So what should President Biden do? President Biden has an opportunity to uphold his Red Line and uphold the ICJ ruling that ordered Israel to not invade Rafah. Doing so gives him a legitimate off ramp to say he misjudged the situation and is willing to right his wrongs. He can save face, hold Israel accountable, and most importantly, stop the preventable massacre of countless more Palestinians. Because in addition to all the aforementioned horrors, Palestinians are in Gaza are continuing to suffer famine as aid is not reaching them.

4. Palestinians are still starving to death, and the pier the US Army built has been an abject failure

Due to Israel’s blockade on aid to Palestine (which is a war crime and violates the ICJ ruling last February), the United States committed to building a pier to transport aid to starving Gazans. That pier, built by the US military to deliver aid to Gaza, broke apart and has been an abject failure. To recap, the US government wasted $320M in taxpayer building this pier. Of the 569 metric tons of aid that made it through the pier, the DOD reports that zero of it reached Gaza. And as the United States and local NGOs confirm, it is not Hamas who is blocking the aid. Instead, multiple sources report that extremist Israeli settlers are blocking the aid, after being tipped off by the Israeli military itself.

Those blocking the vehicles say the aid they carry is being diverted by Hamas instead of being delivered to civilians in need, a claim relief agencies reject. US officials have also said that Israel has offered no evidence to support allegations that Hamas is diverting aid.Meanwhile, the United States is meting out zero consequences for the extremist settlers blocking the aid, zero consequences for Israeli Army for tipping off extremist settlers to block the aid, and is enacting zero change in US policy as Israel starves and kills Palestinians.

And still, President Biden refuses to enforce his Red Line.

In Conclusion…

Whatever President Biden claims is his Red Line, no one has been able to point to where it actually is. Israel has starved Palestinians in Rafah, bombed them repeatedly, killed dozens upon dozens, and blocked all aid, leading to famine, and is now prepping a tank led ground invasion of Rafah. Rather than continue to trust an Israeli government that has repeatedly proven itself untrustworthy, the President should uphold his own word and international human rights law, and stop sending military aid to Israel to use on Palestinian civilians. Otherwise, the only Red Line left in Rafah, will be one drawn with the blood of innocent Palestinians.

I encourage every person reading this to contact the White House and your US Senator, and demand an immediate ceasefire, unconditional release of all hostages, and accountability for the Israeli Government on the tenets of justice.