On October 9, 2023, Palestinians searched for survivors after Israeli air strikes on buildings in Jabalia refugee camp in Gaza. Mohammad Abede/AFP via Getty Images CNN For several months, this report has been the subject of intense debate in the US government, which has led to serious differences within the State Council. Some offices in the State Council, USA, expressed doubts about Israel's assurance that Israel used American weapons in the seven-month Gaza War, but did not violate international law.
The report comes at a critical moment in the war, and it will also assess whether Israel has hindered the delivery of humanitarian aid in the United States. Israel seems to be on the verge of invading the southern city of Rafah, and President Joe Biden warned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu not to do so. At the same time, Hamas and Israel are still unable to reach an agreement on a ceasefire and the release of hostages, because many American universities canceled graduation ceremonies after pro-Palestinian protests broke out on their campuses in the past few weeks.
Under the pressure of congressional Democrats, Biden agreed to issue a new national security memorandum in February, which will examine Israeli behavior in the war with Hamas and the use of American weapons. The memorandum requires all countries that use American weapons to prove that they are in compliance with international human rights law, and speeds up the timetable for those countries that are in active conflict.
Secretary of State Anthony Blinken must report to Congress by Wednesday whether the government considers these assurances "credible and reliable". However, congressional sources told CNN that the government has conveyed to Capitol Hill that the report is expected to be slightly delayed.
"We are working very hard to meet the deadline," the State Council spokesman Matthew Miller said on Tuesday. He pointed out that this is the first time that the State Council has written a report of this nature. "Maybe it just slipped a little."
The State Council basically kept silent about the writing of this report, saying only that "all departments in the State Council will contribute to this report." The insight of Capitol Hill is limited, and congressional sources said that the report is expected to cover the period from January 2023 to the present.
On April 13th, 2024, President Joe Biden met with members of the national security team in the situation room of the White House to discuss the missile attack launched by Iran on Israel. Adam Schultz/ White House via Getty Images Congressional sources told CNN that they believed that the report was drafted by the Political and Military Affairs Bureau of the State Council, with input from other departments of the agency, and the Ministry of National Defense and the National Security Council also participated. Although this report does not ask the United States to change its policy, it may be used to trigger a change.
Congressional sources said that Israeli officials were very worried that the findings of the report might increase Biden's pressure on the United States to provide military assistance to Israel. With the development of the report, Israeli officials have been in close contact with the government. If the report finds that Israel does not abide by international law, it may cause an uproar within Netanyahu's government.
The Israeli Prime Minister and other senior members of the government recently condemned the potential restrictions on military assistance to Israeli military forces, which were found to have seriously violated human rights before the Gaza war.
Although Biden administration officials are becoming more and more outspoken about the humanitarian disaster caused by the war, they have not taken any punitive measures or restricted military assistance to Israel. Last month, Biden warned Netanyahu that Israel must take more measures to solve the humanitarian situation, or American policy will change.
At the end of last month, Amnesty International assessed that the weapons provided by the United States to Israel were used to "seriously violate international humanitarian and human rights laws and are inconsistent with American laws and policies."
The independent task force, led by a former the State Council official who resigned because the United States supported Israel and a human rights lawyer (also a Palestinian-American activist), also concluded that the Israeli army showed "systematic disregard for the basic principles of international law" when using American weapons.
On October 9, 2023, Palestinians mourned the death of their loved ones after the Israeli air raid on Jabalia refugee camp in Gaza. Mahmud Hams/AFP via Getty Images The report lists seven specific examples of such violations, including the attack by the Israel Defense Forces on Jabalia refugee camp on October 9, which killed 39 people. The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights believes that there is no specific military target. Democrats increase pressure on Biden.
Democrats in both the House of Representatives and the Senate urged the Biden administration not to trust Israel's assurances.
Last month, more than 20 Democrats in the House of Representatives wrote a strongly worded letter to government officials, saying that "failure to question the guarantee of Netanyahu's government" ran counter to the purpose of the national security memorandum.
"It is not enough to look at the surface of the explanation you received. We need to see the evidence, "said Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen, who helped draft the memorandum Biden signed in February.
Although he voted for the latest aid package, including billion in military aid to Israel, Van Hollen said that he believed that Biden's government needed to suspend the transfer of any offensive weapons to Israel until Biden's demands for Israel were met. A Republican congressional aide predicted that "there will be some internecine fighting within the Democratic Party on this issue."
Senior Republican members of the House of Representatives and Senate Foreign Affairs Committee condemned the national security memorandum as "an unnecessary requirement, adding unnecessary bureaucracy and causing frustration among partners and allies who rely on US security assistance."
According to the State Council spokesman Miller, as of Monday, the report was still under preparation.
Miller said: "This is something we take very seriously, and our department is doing a lot of work to ensure that we fulfill this obligation and completely fulfill this obligation."
Protesters carry Palestinian flags during the University of Michigan's main commencement in Ann Arbor, Michigan, on Saturday, May 4. Protesters were removed from ceremony after briefly interrupting the proceedings. No one was arrested, according to Melissa Overton, the university's deputy police chief and public information officer. Nic Antaya/Getty Images 
Pro-Palestinian protesters demonstrate on the New York University campus in New York on Friday, May 3. Seth Harrison/Westchester County Journal News/USA TODAY Network 
Police officers block off an area on the Portland State University campus in Portland, Oregon, on Thursday, May 2. Jenny Kane/AP 
Pro-Palestinian protesters demonstrate on the George Washington University campus in Washington, DC, on May 2. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images 
Protesters deface a car after a man drove it toward a crowd at Portland State University in Portland on May 2. The driver stopped just short of a group of protesters and sprayed them with "some kind of pepper spray," police said. Mathieu Lewis-Rolland/Getty Images 
Activists make protest signs inside a pro-Palestinian encampment at The George Washington University on May 2. Craig Hudson/Reuters 
Emma, right, sheds a tear as she and her friend Aryn listen to the names of Israeli hostages as they attend a pro-Israel rally at George Washington University on May 2. Roberto Schmidt/AFP/Getty Images 
Police face off with pro-Palestinian protesters at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) on May 2. Etienne Laurent/AFP/Getty Images 
A protester is detained at UCLA on May 2. Mike Blake/Reuters 
Pro-Palestinian protesters stand their ground after police breached their encampment at UCLA on May 2. Etienne Laurent/AFP/Getty Images 
Police take down a barricade as protesters gather at an encampment at UCLA on May 2. Mike Blake/Reuters 
Pro-Palestinian protesters gather outside Fordham University's Lincoln Center campus after a group created an encampment inside the building in New York on Wednesday, May 1. Spencer Platt/Getty Images 
A man is detained after a scuffle as pro-Palestinian protesters rally outside Fordham on May 1. Spencer Platt/Getty Images 
Pro-Palestinian demonstrators rebuild a barricade around an encampment at UCLA on May 1. Before police were deployed to campus, pro-Palestinian protesters and Israel supporters were clashing at the school, according to multiple reports. Etienne Laurent/AFP/Getty Images 
Police officers stand guard after clashes erupted on the campus of UCLA. Frederic J. Brown/AFP/Getty Images 
Counter-protesters attack a pro-Palestinian encampment at UCLA. Etienne Laurent/AFP/Getty Images 
Police use a vehicle named "the bear" to enter Hamilton Hall, which was occupied by protesters at Columbia University in New York on Tuesday, April 30. About 300 protesters were arrested, according to the NYPD. Caitlin Ochs/Reuters 
Police detain a protester at Columbia on April 30. David Dee Delgado/Reuters 
Pro-Palestinian protesters climb a fence during demonstrations at The City College of New York on April 30. Spencer Platt/Getty Images 
An NYPD bus transports arrested demonstrators at Columbia on April 30. Charly Triballeau/AFP/Getty Images 
Protesters confront police at The City College of New York on April 30. Spencer Platt/Getty Images 
NYPD officers march into Columbia on April 30. Kena Betancur/AFP/Getty Images 
Protesters occupy Columbia's Hamilton Hall early on April 30. Seyma Bayram 
Protesters barricade themselves inside Hamilton Hall on April 30. Dozens of protesters were occupying Hamilton Hall, one of the campus buildings also occupied during 1968 student protests, according to a social media post from Columbia Students for Justice in Palestine. Alex Kent/Getty Images 
A protester breaks the windows of the front door of Hamilton Hall in order to secure a chain around it and prevent authorities from entering early on April 30. Alex Kent/Getty Images 
Protesters at Brown University celebrate April 30 after reaching a deal with the administration to end their encampment in Providence, Rhode Island. The university agreed to hold a vote on divestment from companies that support Israel, according to the protest group. Joseph Prezioso/AFP/Getty Images 
Columbia University students gather for a picket organized by the Student Workers Union (UAW Local 2710) on Monday, April 29. Seyma Bayram 
Pro-Palestinian protesters confront a Texas state trooper at the University of Texas in Austin on April 29. Suzanne Cordeiro/AFP/Getty Images 
A protester at Columbia University wears the university's disciplinary notice on April 29. Alex Kent/Getty Images 
Demonstrators march past Low Library while chanting "Free Palestine" on Columbia's campus on April 29. Diane Handal 
Students from George Washington University stand on top of police barricades as they protest in Washington, DC, on April 29. Cliff Owen/AP 
Pro-Palestinian students and activists participate in a demonstration at UCLA on Sunday, April 28. Qian Weizhong/VCG via Getty Images 
Students and pro-Palestinian supporters occupy a plaza at New York University on April 26. David Dee Delgado/Rueters 
Georgia State Patrol officers detain a demonstrator on the campus of Emory University during a pro-Palestinian demonstration in Atlanta on April 25. Mike Stewart/AP 
Jewish students wave Israeli flags as a counter-protest near a pro-Palestinian camp at UCLA on April 25. Sarah Reingewirtz/MediaNews Group/Los Angeles Daily News/Getty Images 
Texas state troopers try to break up a pro-Palestinian protest at the University of Texas in Austin on April 24. Jay Janner/Austin Statesman/USA Today Network/Reuters 
Students at the University of Texas at Austin watch a protest from a classroom window on April 24. Brandon Bell/Getty Images 
Students are arrested during the protest in Austin on April 24. There were dozens of arrests. University police had warned students in an email that they faced more arrests if they didn't disperse from the site. Brandon Bell/Getty Images 
Protesters link arms at Emerson College in Boston on April 24. Brian Snyder/Reuters 
House Speaker Mike Johnson speaks to the media on the campus of Columbia University after meeting with Jewish students on April 24. He called on the school's president to resign during a tense news conference where the crowd repeatedly interrupted him and at times loudly booed him and other Republican lawmakers who were with him. Timothy A. Clary/AFP/Getty Images 
Demonstrators' tents are set up on Columbia's campus in New York on April 24. The school is also preparing for graduation ceremonies. Alex Kent/Getty Images 
Demonstrators work on a banner April 24 at Swarthmore College in Swarthmore, Pennsylvania. Matthew Hatcher/Getty Images 
Protesters demonstrate at the University of Texas in Austin on April 24. Nuri Vallbona/Reuters 
Demonstrators and Texas state troopers face one another in Austin on April 24. Jordan Vonderhaar/Bloomberg/Getty Images 
Police stand near protesters at the University of Southern California on April 24. Zaydee Sanchez/Reuters 
New York police officers stand near protesters outside the main entrance of Columbia University on April 24. Caitlin Ochs/Reuters 
Columbia students prepare to camp overnight on April 23. Caitlin Ochs/Reuters 
A group of Jewish and non-Jewish students gather at the Columbia encampment to celebrate Seder, a ritual feast at the start of the Jewish holiday of Passover. Columbia student Cameron Jones told CNN: "I am Jewish and, to me, Passover symbolizes perseverance and resilience. I think this encampment represents those two ideals because we have seen the university take countless measures to try to suppress our student activism, and here is us persevering through that." Caitlin Ochs/Reuters 
A makeshift memorial at Columbia, seen on April 23, pays tribute to Jewish hostages taken by Hamas in October. Stephanie Keith/Getty Images 
Students protest near New York University on April 23. Andres Kudacki/The New York Times/Redux 
Students at the University of California, Berkeley, set up an encampment at Sproul Hall on April 23. Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu/Getty Images 
Pro-Palestinian demonstrators sit at Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut, on April 23. University police arrested at least 45 protesters the day before and charged them with criminal trespassing after they refused orders to leave. Joe Buglewicz/Bloomberg/Getty Images 
Police and protesters face off at New York University on April 22. Fatih Aktas/Anadolu/Getty Images 
Police officers clear away tents from an encampment at New York University on April 22. Alex Kent/AFP/Getty Images 
People watch from a window as New York University students set up a tent encampment on April 22. Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images 
Students and pro-Palestinian supporters rally at The New School in New York on April 22. Mary Altaffer/AP 
Students rally at an encampment at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge on April 22. Scott Eisen/Getty Images 
A pro-Palestinian protest is held at the steps of Columbia's Lowe Library on April 22. David Dee Delgado/Getty Images 
Some Columbia professors rally in support of their protesting students on April 22. Stefan Jeremiah/AP 
Israeli flags are reflected in the sunglasses of a demonstrator in front of Columbia University on April 22. Stephanie Keith/Bloomberg/Getty Images 
Student activists set up camp at a New School cafeteria on April 21. Stephanie Keith/Getty Images 
Pro-Palestinian protesters gather outside a Columbia building on April 20. Selcuk Acar/Anadolu/Getty Images 
Police officers stand near barriers as pro-Palestinian protesters gather outside of Columbia on April 18. Kena Betancur/AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Gaza protests spread at US colleges Prev Next “We’ll be making our own assessments not just based on what those governments have told us, but based on what we have seen in our review here at the State Department,” he added, saying that Israel provided its assurances to the US at the end of March. On Saturday, May 4th, protesters held Palestinian flags at the main graduation ceremony in ann arbor, University of Michigan. The protesters were expelled after a short interruption of the ceremony. According to Melissa overton, deputy police chief and public information officer of the university, no one was arrested. Nic Antaya/Getty Images "We will make our own assessment based not only on what these governments have told us, but also on what we have seen in the State Council," he added, adding that Israel provided assurances to the United States at the end of March.
Many humanitarian officials from all over the world made it clear that they thought it was a violation of international law, and said that they had shared their views on the memorandum with the United States Agency for International Development, the main humanitarian agency in the United States.
They told CNN that accepting Israel's assurances that they would abide by the law would damage the credibility of the United States.
A humanitarian official said: "Obviously, there are violations. "Frankly speaking, why are people starving? Why did you finally decide to provide aid from the sky or build a very expensive port, if you were not sure that the aid was stopped?"