US communicating with Israel at "the highest levels" about protecting Gaza civilians, official says

The United States is emphasizing the importance of protecting civilian lives in Gaza in conversations “at the highest levels” of the Israeli government, the top US national security adviser said Sunday, even as he repeatedly declined to say whether Israel was going about its war the right way.

National security adviser Jake Sullivan said US President Joe Biden would speak later Sunday with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu — their first known conversation since Israel expanded its ground operations in Gaza — and would reiterate the importance of distinguishing "between terrorists and civilians" as Israel conducts its operation.

The assault on Gaza has left thousands of Palestinian civilians dead and worsened the humanitarian crisis in the enclave. Aid has been slow to enter and civilians, including hundreds of Americans, have been unable to leave. While some aid has made its way to Gaza, humanitarian workers say it is a fraction of what’s required for the 2.2 million people crammed into Gaza under a blockade imposed by Israel and Egypt.

More than 200 hundred hostages also remain held by Hamas on the strip, according to officials, and securing their release could be complicated by the expanded operation.

Sullivan said Israel was solely responsible for its military operations. “They’re the ones making decisions, they’re the ones conducting the operations,” he said, declining to openly criticize any aspect of the new military effort.

“I’m not going to react to every strike, every move that they make,” he said.

Israel's intentions in Gaza: Sullivan did indicate that tougher conversations were being held behind the scenes between senior US and Israeli officials — including Biden and Netanyahu — about the scope and intent of Israel’s going into Gaza.

“We’ve asked them hard questions, the same hard questions that we would ask ourselves if we were seeking to conduct an operation to take out a terrorist threat,” Sullivan said. “We’ve pressed them on questions like objectives and matching means to objectives, about both tactical and strategic issues associated with this operation.”

Sullivan said Hamas was “making life extremely difficult for Israel” by using civilians as human shields and placing its rocket infrastructure among civilian populations.

“That creates an added burden for Israel. But it does not lessen Israel’s responsibility under international humanitarian law to distinguish between terrorists and civilians, and to protect the lives of innocent people,” he said.