Ha'aretz is reporting that Secretary of State Clinton has issued a warning to Israel over delaying and preventing humanitarian aid from entering Gaza. Clinton promises "that the matter will be central to [her] planned visit to Israel next Tuesday," and envoy George Mitchell might address the issue as early as tomorrow.
What has Israel been refusing to let into Gaza? John Kerry got a first hand look last week on his visit. Again, Ha'aretz:
When Senator John Kerry visited the Strip, he learned that many trucks loaded with pasta were not permitted in. When the chairman of the Senate Foreign Affairs Committee inquired as to the reason for the delay, he was told by United Nations aid officials that "Israel does not define pasta as part of humanitarian aid – only rice shipments."
Kerry asked Barak about the logic behind this restriction, and only after the senior U.S. official's intervention did the defense minister allow the pasta into the Strip. The U.S. senator updated colleagues at the Senate and other senior officials in Washington of the details of his visit.
Do these signs point to a changing US policy? Kerry, Clinton and the Obama Administration do seem ready to hold Israel a bit more accountable than past administrations. Reps. Baird and Ellison returned from Gaza last week calling for a change to US policy as well. Israel seems concerned by the possibility. The Jerusalem Post reports that that the Israeli Defense Ministry is concerned that the US will cut military aid to Israel to pressure Israel on settlement construction.
This is an unfolding story, but we might get an initial sign of the administration's agenda when Obama releases the 2010 budget tomorrow. Stay tuned.
