Israel’s defense minister assures US of importance of Rafah operation, despite Biden administration warnings

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant “emphasized the importance of operating” in Rafah, when he spoke with US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin overnight.

Gallant said there is “concrete information” of hostages being held in Rafah and claimed 20 “terror tunnels have been identified” in the area, in his conversation with Austin, according to a statement from the Israeli Defense Minister’s Communications Office.

Gallant briefed the Secretary of Defense “on developments in the war against the Hamas terrorist organization and efforts to ensure the return of 125 hostages held in Gaza,” the statement said.

For context: President Joe Biden had earlier warned that the US would stop supplying American weapons to Israel if Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered a major invasion of Rafah. However Biden’s administration is yet to take action on that promise, saying that so far — the strikes that killed at least 45 people, of whom many were children sheltering in tents — have not crossed that red line.

The Israeli strikes on Rafah have caused global outcry, with Germany describing the images of “charred bodies, including children” from Israeli airstrikes as “unbearable,” French President Emmanuel Macron saying he was “outraged” by the strikes and various UN leaders criticizing Israel for the attack.