Watan-The spokesperson for the U.S. National Security Council, John Kirby, made shocking statements about the number of civilian casualties in the Gaza Strip due to the brutal war waged by the occupying army since October 7th of last year.
Kirby said in a press conference: “I want to be very clear, and I know we’ve said this a million times, and perhaps you’re all tired of hearing this from me, but that does not mean that we justify any loss of innocent lives.”
He added: “The accurate number of civilian casualties is zero, but there is nothing to indicate that we have seen or acted on any genocide confirming the claim of intent from the Israeli forces.”
This comes at a time when the death toll from the war on Gaza has exceeded 26,000 martyrs, according to statistics from the Ministry of Health in the Gaza Strip.
No change in U.S. policy to support Israel
Kirby confirmed that the White House’s policy has not changed, following a report by NBC that the Biden administration discussed halting or slowing down some arms shipments to Israel to pressure Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to reduce the military operation in Gaza.
John Kirby reiterated the U.S. perspective, stating that it points to what he called “Israel’s right to self-defense” against the threat from the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas), while adhering to international humanitarian law and protecting civilian lives.
“العدد الحقيقي للقتلى المدنيين في غزة هو صفر..” المتحدث باسم البيت الأبيض، جون كيربي، تعليقاً على قرار المحكمة الدولية بضرورة حماية أهالي غزة من أعمال الإبادة الجماعية التي تنفذها إسرائيل منذ 7 أكتوبر/تشرين الأول الماضي. pic.twitter.com/u2RzmnLY8V
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Kirby said: “We remain committed to supporting Israel in its war against Hamas. We have been doing so since October 7th, and we will continue. There is no change in our policy.”
Pentagon review of weapons requested by Israel
NBC reported that the White House directed the Pentagon to review the weapons requested by Israel that could be used as a means of pressure, but no decisions have been made yet.
The sources stated that Israeli officials continue to demand more weapons from the U.S., including large aerial bombs, ammunition, and air defense weapons.
The discussion comes weeks after specific requests from the U.S. administration to the Israeli government to reduce military operations in Gaza, but the response to those demands did not meet the level desired by the White House.
Public disputes between Biden and Netanyahu
It should be noted that in recent weeks, public disputes have surfaced between Biden and Netanyahu over how to manage the war on Gaza and the future of the territory after the cessation of hostilities. However, these disagreements have not reached a point of cessation or a change in the nature of U.S. support for Tel Aviv.