Senior US State Department official resigns in protest of Biden's position on Gaza

Senior US State Department official Josh Paul announced his resignation in protest against the approach of President Joe Biden’s administration to the Gaza file and its continued support for Israel.

Paul, who has been the director of congressional and public affairs for the State Department’s Bureau of Political-Military Affairs for over 11 years, said in a post on Linkedin, that the administration’s “blind support for one side” – in reference to Israel – has led to “a set of major policy decisions, including rushing more arms to one side of the conflict, that I believe to be short-sighted, destructive, unjust and contradictory to the very values we publicly espouse.”

Paul explained in statements to HuffPost: “I have had my fair share of debates and discussions and efforts to shift policy on controversial arms sales. It was clear that there’s no arguing with this one. Given that I couldn’t shift anything, I resigned.”

US President Joe Biden confirmed to the Israeli government during his meeting with its members yesterday that he understands that the Israeli army’s battle to defeat Hamas will take time, the Axios news site reports, citing a senior American official.

Israeli Minister Benny Gantz told Biden during the meeting that defeating Hamas “could take years”, while Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant told Biden that “US support will be critical for Israel, as the war drags on.”

Biden responded that “it will be easier for the US to support Israel if it allows humanitarian aid to reach Gaza.”

Read: Why do you hate us this much?