Internal US State Dept memo says Biden ‘spreading misinformation,’ Israel committing ‘war crimes’ in Gaza
The note points to a speech made by the president three days after the initial Hamas attack in which he decried the killings by the group as an “act of sheer evil,” Axios, the organisation that obtained the note said without giving specifics
One hundred US government officials from the State Department and International Development Agency have signed an internal memo criticising the White House for "disregarding the lives of Palestinians" and for showing an "unwillingness to de-escalate" in the Israel-Hamas war.
The memo, obtained by Axios recently, singles out Biden for personal criticism, accusing him of "spreading misinformation".
Without giving specifics, Axios said, it points to a speech made by the president three days after the initial Hamas attack in which he decried the killings by the group as an "act of sheer evil".
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According to Axios, the memo was sent to the policy office of the US State Department on 3 November.
It was sent through an approved channel within the agency that allows for expressing private misgivings about official government policy in what is known as "dissent cables".
The cables are intended to allow diplomats to raise objections to State Department strategy without fear of reprisals. They were set up in the wake of the Vietnam War as a form of internal checks and balances, but they were meant to remain private.
The memo, which Axios reports was organized by a "junior diplomat" within the State Department, blames Biden for failing to counter Israeli "war crimes" in Gaza. It says that the Biden administration has "doubled down on our unwavering military assistance to the [Israeli government] without clear or actionable redlines".
Meanwhile, Israel has proceeded to cut off electricity and aid to Gaza, which the memo says "all constitute war crimes and/or crimes against humanity under international law".
More than 11,000 people have been killed since the Israeli offensive in Gaza began, about 40% of whom are children, according to the Gaza health ministry.
