| | | | |  | | By Matt Berg and Eric Bazail-Eimil | |  Israel's Rafah operation is becoming more intense and deadly, seemingly flouting the White House’s warnings that civilians should be protected. | Jehad Alshrafi/AP | With help from Daniel Lippman Subscribe here | Email Matt | Email Eric Israeli attacks appear to have killed dozens of Palestinians sheltering in tent camps in Gaza over the past two days, causing Washington’s closest allies to call for its military operation to stop for good — but the Biden administration still won’t budge. Israel’s strike on the southern city of Rafah on Sunday night led to a fire that killed at least 45 Palestinians taking shelter in tents for displaced people, according to Gaza officials. Today, Israeli tanks also fired four shells at a group of tents in an evacuation area near Rafah and killed at least 21 Palestinians, a report Israel and the U.S. haven’t confirmed. “Israel has a right to go after the Hamas terrorists responsible for the cold-blooded murder of civilians, as appears to have been Israel's aim here,” State Department spokesperson MATTHEW MILLER told reporters this afternoon, speaking to the fire incident. Washington’s closest allies are striking a stark contrast, underscoring how staunchly President JOE BIDEN supports Israel no matter how its actions are viewed on the world stage. “These operations must stop,” French President EMMANUEL MACRON said. “Canada does not support an Israeli military operation in Rafah,” Canadian Foreign Minister MÉLANIE JOLY said. A hostage deal is needed “with a pause in fighting to allow work towards a long-term sustainable ceasefire,” British Foreign Minister DAVID CAMERON said. European foreign ministers have discussed sanctioning Israel. For his part, Israeli Prime Minister BENJAMIN NETANYAHU admitted that it was “a tragic mistake” that will be investigated. Israel’s military denied that its strike caused secondary explosions that killed many of the civilians, and Miller said Israel used a small bomb intended to strike a mile away from the camp. Beyond the details of the incidents, the Rafah operation is becoming more intense and deadly, seemingly flouting the White House’s warnings that civilians should be protected. Tanks also rolled into the center of Rafah for the first time today, increasing the possibility for more violence, and about one million civilians have already fled the city. There’s no clear idea of what it would take for the United States to call on Israel to stop its offensive in Rafah, let alone Gaza. That’s been true for weeks, but the latest strikes will make it more difficult for the Biden administration to argue that its “red line” hasn’t been crossed. Minutes ago, National Security Council spokesperson JOHN KIRBY did provide more details on what the U.S. doesn’t want to see in Rafah: “A major ground operation is, you know, thousands and thousands of troops moving in a maneuvered, concentrated, coordinated way against a variety of targets on the ground.” That type of operation isn't happening right now, he said, and “I have no policy changes to speak to." Washington has already dodged the thorny question of whether Israel has violated international humanitarian law or not, and Israel’s strike against World Central Kitchen workers in April — which killed an American — didn’t cause White House support to waver (despite high levels of criticism). It’s worth keeping an eye on South Africa, which has repeatedly antagonized Israel. Pretoria argued today that the latest Israeli attacks could bolster its genocide case brought to the International Court of Justice, and several European countries have backed the court’s ruling last week that Israel should halt its operation in Rafah. “Political capital is not infinite, and we are seeing important Israeli allies being forced to take more nuanced positions in light of this increased pressure, like Germany,” ALONSO GURMENDI, a lecturer in International Relations at the University of Oxford, told NatSec Daily. The strikes show that “Israel cannot really carry out military operations in Gaza without causing immense death and humanitarian disaster — but it does it anyway,” he added.
| | A message from Lockheed Martin: What matters to us is protecting what matters most.
Lockheed Martin’s mission is to protect the ones who serve in their service to the nation. It’s why we lead the way in developing new defense tech and pushing the capabilities of what’s possible to bring security to an unsecure world. Learn more. | | | | | MOSSAD’S ICC PRESSURE: Israel waged a nine-year pressure campaign against the International Criminal Court, spying, hacking and threatening senior ICC officials, including the then-Chief Prosecutor of the multinational tribunal, as it probed alleged Israeli war crimes against Palestinians, according to an investigation by The Guardian and two Israeli news outlets. As The Guardian’s HARRY DAVIES writes, former Mossad chief YOSSI COHEN threatened the ICC’s then-prosecutor, FATOU BENSOUDA, in the years leading up to her decision to open an official probe into alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in occupied Palestinian territories. Israeli intelligence also captured the communications of numerous ICC officials, including Bensouda and her successor KARIM KHAN, intercepting phone calls, messages, emails and documents and providing Netanyahu with knowledge of Khan’s plans to charge Israeli officials. PIER PRESSURE: The U.S. is suspending aid deliveries across the temporary pier in the Gaza Strip after it was damaged by rough seas, the Defense Department announced today. Pentagon spokesperson SABRINA SINGH told reporters that a portion of the pier was damaged and sections need to be repaired and rebuilt. The pier will go to Ashdod, where Central Command will repair it over the course of a week. The pier only came into service last week and was intended to supplement aid flows coming through the various land crossings between Gaza and Israel. But the aid deliveries faced their own challenges and the flow of aid failed to reach the desired targets during its first week of operations. BIG DAY FOR PALESTINE: Spain, Ireland and Norway officially recognized a Palestinian state today, with the goal of speeding up cease-fire efforts and spurring other European Union countries to follow suit. Of the 193 member states of the United Nations, 146 recognize Palestine. Slovenia also announced today it will recognize Palestine in June, according to Al Jazeera. WASHINGTON’S IRAN MOVES: The Biden administration is attempting to steer European allies away from censuring Iran over its rapid development of weapons-grade uranium, according to The Wall Street Journal’s LAURENCE NORMAN. U.S. diplomats have officially denied that they’re lobbying against the British and French push against Tehran at the International Atomic Energy Agency, but U.S. officials told the Journal they’re worried Iran could become more volatile following the death of Iranian President EBRAHIM RAISI last week. IT’S TUESDAY: Thanks for tuning in to NatSec Daily! This space is reserved for the top U.S. and foreign officials, the lawmakers, the lobbyists, the experts and the people like you who care about how the natsec sausage gets made. Aim your tips and comments at mberg@politico.com and ebazail@politico.com, and follow us on X at @mattberg33 and @ebazaileimil. While you’re at it, follow the rest of POLITICO’s national security team: @alexbward, @nahaltoosi, @PhelimKine, @laraseligman, @connorobrienNH, @paulmcleary, @leehudson, @magmill95, @johnnysaks130, @ErinBanco, @reporterjoe, and @JGedeon1.
| | | | THE GOLD STANDARD OF DEFENSE POLICY REPORTING & INTELLIGENCE: POLITICO has more than 500 journalists delivering unrivaled reporting and illuminating the policy and regulatory landscape for those who need to know what’s next. Throughout the election and the legislative and regulatory pushes that will follow, POLITICO Pro is indispensable to those who need to make informed decisions fast. The Pro platform dives deeper into critical and quickly evolving sectors and industries, like defense, equipping policymakers and those who shape legislation and regulation with essential news and intelligence from the world’s best politics and policy journalists.
Our newsroom is deeper, more experienced, and better sourced than any other. Our defense reporting team—including Lara Seligman, Joe Gould, Paul McCleary, Connor O’Brien and Lee Hudson—is embedded with the market-moving legislative committees and agencies in Washington and across states, delivering unparalleled coverage of defense policy and the defense industry. We bring subscribers inside the conversations that determine policy outcomes and the future of industries, providing insight that cannot be found anywhere else. Get the premier news and policy intelligence service, SUBSCRIBE TO POLITICO PRO TODAY. | | | | | | | | | TRUMP PROMISES PUNITION: Former President DONALD TRUMP told wealthy donors that his administration would punish pro-Palestinian protestors in the United States if elected in November, The Washington Post’s JOSH DAWSEY, KAREN DeYOUNG and MARIANNE LEVINE reported Monday. Trump promised donors at a May 14 fundraiser that he’d crack down on demonstrations across the country and expel pro-Palestinian protestors from the United States, branding critics of the Israeli government’s prosecution of the war in Gaza as a “radical revolution’ that he’d crush. The private remarks come as Trump has publicly waffled on the Israel-Hamas war and criticized Israeli Prime Minister BENJAMIN NETANYAHU. It also follows reports that his campaign has sought to court Arab American voters in critical swing states who are disillusioned with Biden’s continued support for Israel’s war effort.
| | ISRAEL’S USE OF PEGASUS: Another tidbit from the Israel ICC reporting: Israeli intelligence agencies planted Pegasus software on the phones of Palestinian officials and members of human rights organizations working on the ICC war crimes probes, +972’s YUVAL ABRAHAM and MERON RAPOPORT report. In 2021, as Israel was working to thwart the ICC case, different intelligence agencies installed the highly-sophisticated spyware software on the phones of OMAR AWADALLAH and AMMAR HIJAZI, the point people for the ICC case within the Palestinian Authority’s Justice Ministry. They also targeted the computers of six different Palestinian human rights organizations. The goal was reportedly to monitor submissions from the Palestinian Authority as well as those human rights groups that included testimonies of Palestinians attacked by Israeli settlers and soldiers. The outlets also report that Israel surveilled accusers as well and worked to delegitimize the ICC case in the process.
| | | | DON’T MISS POLITICO’S ENERGY SUMMIT: The future of energy faces a crossroads in 2024 as policymakers and industry leaders shape new rules, investments and technologies. Join POLITICO’s Energy Summit on June 5 as we convene top voices to examine the shifting global policy environment in a year of major elections in the U.S. and around the world. POLITICO will examine how governments are writing and rewriting new rules for the energy future and America’s own role as a major exporter. REGISTER HERE. | | | | | | | | BELGIUM NOT WAFFLING: Belgium pledged today to send the first batch of F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine this year, with a caveat: Ukraine can’t fly them in Russian territory, our own ŠEJLA AHMATOVIĆ and STUART LAU report. Ukraine and Belgium signed a security agreement, which includes the delivery of 30 U.S.-made F-16s to bolster Kyiv's defense capabilities against Russia’s ongoing invasion. The agreement is worth more than $1 billion in military aid to Ukraine, Zelenskyy announced today during his visit to the country. Belgian Prime Minister ALEXANDER DE CROO had already announced last year that Belgium would send F-16s to Ukraine in 2025 — without saying how many. Crucially, he also said at the time that the main condition would be whether the next government continues with the plan, as Belgium is headed toward an election in June. Read: NATO allies don’t want to be dragged into EU top jobs race by our own STUART LAU, BARBARA MOENS and JACOPO BARIGAZZI WHO LET THE (ROBOT) DOGS OUT? China recently unveiled a new line of robot dogs armed with guns in the latest escalation of the autonomous weapons cold war. According to CNN’s BRAD LENDON and NECTAR GAN, the electric canines were first shown publicly during joint military exercises with Cambodia earlier this month. The gun-toting hounds, which are operated using a remote control, come as countries around the world increase their use and development of autonomous and remote weapons systems.
| | GOP SLAMS CUBA SANCTIONS CHANGE: South Florida’s Cuban lawmakers are condemning the Biden administration’s decision to relax sanctions against Cuba and allow Cuban entrepreneurs greater access to the U.S. financial system. Rep. MARÍA ELVIRA SALAZAR (R-Fla.), who represents Miami’s Little Havana neighborhood, blasted the decision as “a mockery of American law, considering no progress has been made toward freedom on the Island and repression has intensified” in a post on X. Meanwhile, Rep. CARLOS GÍMENEZ (R-Fla.), who was born in Cuba, wrote on X that the policy change will “only perpetuate the regime in power & prolong the suffering of the Cuban people,” adding “the blatant complicity with these dictators is dangerous & pathetic.” Earlier today, the Biden administration announced it would finally implement a 2022 rule granting Cuban private businesses access to U.S.-based transaction platforms and banking services. The move, per senior administration officials who briefed reporters on condition of anonymity, is intended to promote civil society and contribute to the eventual collapse of Cuba’s lagging communist regime. “It's clear the communist experiment of Cuba has failed and the government is no longer able to provide for its citizens most basic needs in a country where there are no free elections,” one of the senior administration officials told reporters. “We must encourage the freedom of Cuban citizens to define their own economic future.”
| | | |   | | | | | ZELENSKYY SPEAKS HIS PEACE: Ukrainian President VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY warned that if Biden misses the upcoming peace summit in Switzerland to discuss how to end the war in Ukraine, Russian President VLADIMIR PUTIN would celebrate. “I know that the U.S. supports the summit but we don't know at what level,” Zelenskyy told reporters in Brussels today, per Reuters’ PHIL BLENKINSOP, ANASTASIIA MALENKO and DAN PELESCHU. Biden and other world leaders need to attend, or else “Putin will only applaud his absence, personally applaud it.” The summit will be held on June 15 and 16, and Zelenskyy has also urged Chinese President XI JINPING to attend. Russia hasn’t been invited, and Ukrainians shot down the prospect last week following reports that Putin wants a cease-fire on current battle lines. TAIWAN’S PRESIDENTIAL CHANGE: Taiwan’s opposition-controlled legislature passed new laws reducing the powers of newly-elected President LAI CHING-TE in a move seen as favoring China, according to the Associated Press. The package of laws would give the legislature greater control of budgets, in particular defense spending. The Kuomintang party, which favors closer ties with China, has blocked defense spending in what many see as a concession to China. Protests broke out outside amid the legislative debate, which at times got so heated it sparked fistfights between lawmakers. The push by the Kuomintang party comes amid escalating tensions between Taipei and Beijing. Over the weekend, China conducted extensive military exercises surrounding the self-governing island, prompting alarm from Washington and other observers.
| | — VANESSA VELASQUEZ is joining Customs and Border Protection as a senior adviser in the office of Public Affairs. She previously was a White House fellow for the secretary of the Navy.
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Building a better world means developing the next generation of defense tech. We’re redefining what it means to be ready, so tomorrow’s challenges can be overcome today. Learn more. | | | | | — DYLAN MATTHEWS, Vox: The obscure federal intelligence bureau that got Vietnam, Iraq, and Ukraine right — DAVID GRAHAM, The Atlantic: Trump has a new plan to deal with campus protests — EOIN DREA, POLITICO: Ireland’s the ultimate defense freeloader
| | — Wilson Center's Mexico Institute, 10:30 a.m.: Freedom of speech and protecting journalists in Mexico — Arab Center, 11 a.m.: The threats of artificial intelligence and disinformation in times of global crises — American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research, 12:30 p.m.: Lessons for an unserious superpower: The 'Scoop' Jackson legacy and U.S. foreign policy — Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe, 2 p.m: Ukrainian culture in wartime Thanks to our editor, Rosie Perper, who we have been spying on and hacking ever since she started her job. Thanks to our producer, Gregory Svironvisky, who installed Pegasus software on her phone. | | | | Follow us on Twitter | | | | Follow us | | | | |
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