The Washington Post published a report on the deep sympathy that US President Joe Biden has for Israel and his lack of this sympathy for the Palestinians.
The newspaper reported the angry reactions of Arab Americans, Muslims, and others to his statements regarding the war in Gaza.
The report – written by John Hudson and Yasmine Abu Talib – indicated that although the White House says that Biden often calls for the protection of Palestinian civilians, critics see a flaw in his tone, and that Arab and Muslim Americans who voted for him in 2020 confirmed that they feel betrayed and will not vote for him. Next year.
The report cited Biden’s speeches on various occasions about “atrocities” committed by the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) against the Israelis during its attack on October 7, especially those in which he provided details that raised fear.
A stark contrast in his compassion
The report said that Biden repeatedly expressed sympathy and sadness for the suffering of Israelis, and the concerns of Jews around the world after the Hamas attack, and won deep appreciation among Israel’s supporters, but many Arab and Muslim Americans as well as young voters and anti-war liberals say that the same sympathy and conviction often prevail. They were missing from Biden’s speech about the suffering of Palestinians in Gaza even as the death toll there rose to more than 17,000, including thousands of children.
The report quoted Shibli Telhami, a researcher in the Middle East at the University of Maryland, as saying that Biden, in addition to his clear description of the horrific attack launched by Hamas on Israel and the Israeli victims, rarely spoke about the Palestinian children who were torn to pieces or about the hundreds of thousands of people without water or food, adding that “ He talks about the Palestinians as if they were victims of an earthquake or a natural disaster, without linking what happened to them to the actions of the Israeli government and its support.”
The Washington Post reported that White House officials defend Biden and say that he repeatedly called on Israel to avoid civilian casualties, and called for increased aid to Gaza to alleviate the suffering of innocent Palestinians.
But many American Muslim and Arab leaders feel that Biden’s emotional expression and compassion are starkly different when he talks about Israelis and Palestinians, especially with the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Gaza. About 80% of Gaza’s population has been displaced, and a growing number of them lack basic necessities, and some have criticized Special: Biden’s famous denial of casualty figures from the Ministry of Health in Gaza.
His tone is frustrating for Arabs and Muslims
The report indicated that for some Arab and Muslim Americans, Biden’s realistic tone seems particularly frustrating from a figure known for his ability to relate to suffering, as he lost his wife and infant daughter in a car accident in 1972, and his son Beau died of brain cancer in 2015, which enabled him to… It is often better to talk about grief with genuine empathy.
But when he talks about suffering and death in Gaza, Biden refrains from directly criticizing Israel, creating a growing discord with some of his staff. Many senior officials in his administration have become more willing to point to Israeli responsibility and speak evocatively about Palestinian grief since it resumed its military campaign in Gaza by striking the south with the same ferocity with which the north was struck earlier.
The report referred to the statement of US Vice President Kamala Harris during her recent visit to the Middle East, where she said, “Many innocent Palestinians were killed. Frankly, the extent of civilian suffering and the images and videos coming from Gaza are horrific.”
The report also referred to statements by Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Secretary of State Anthony Blinken in which they showed clear sympathy with the Palestinians.
There are no conditions on Israel
The report also conveyed admissions from other American officials that American warnings to Israel regarding casualties in southern Gaza were not heeded, and that the Biden administration does not impose conditions on American aid to Israel that could increase pressure on Tel Aviv.
Biden’s aides told the Washington Post that the US president has an emotional attachment to Israel and a belief in its role as a vital refuge for the Jewish people, a feeling that has developed over decades in public life, including as chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
They add that the Hamas attack on Israel affected Biden deeply. In a speech he gave 3 days later, Biden relied on a line he often uses to talk about grief, and said, “It leaves a black hole in your chest when you lose your family, and you feel as if you are drowning in anger, pain, and a feeling of despair.”
The language has drawn praise from many Jewish leaders even as more liberal Jewish activists criticize Israel’s military offensive and urge Biden to press for a ceasefire.
Feeling hurt and betrayed
The report stated that many Arab and Muslim American voters said that their current hurt and anger stems in part from the fact that they supported Biden in 2020 in the belief that they were electing someone committed to human rights who could empathize with the deep sadness they feel now.
Imran Salha, the imam of the Islamic Center in Detroit, said that many Muslims and Arabs – including Arab Christians and Palestinians – feel betrayed.
Salha recounted that a Muslim activist – who was very active in the presidential nomination in 2020 – wrote Biden’s name on his birthday cake while campaigning for him.
