US doublespeak threatens Mideast peace

Since the outbreak of the conflict between Israel and Palestine, the international community has been calling for an immediate and unconditional cease-fire given the high casualties caused by Israel's incessant pounding of the Gaza Strip and a continuously worsening humanitarian crisis.

However, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken's response to the crisis during his latest visit to the Middle East has shocked the world. At his meeting with Arab foreign ministers, Blinken point-blank rejected a cease-fire proposal put forward by the Arab countries, emphasizing Israel's right to self-defense and the US government's continued support to Israel's military actions against Hamas, whose attack on Israel on Oct 7 sparked the ongoing conflict.

Blinken's remarks expose the double standard the United States resorts to on issues of major global concern. By taking sides, adding fuel to the fire that the Israel-Palestine conflict has become, the US, by default, is threatening to destabilize the entire Middle East region.

As of now, Israel's military operation in Gaza has resulted in more than 10,000 deaths, including those of over 4,000 children. Tens of thousands of people have been wounded and about 1.4 million displaced, with almost all the 2.3 million Palestinian people living in extreme insecurity, and facing severe food and medical shortage.

The basic infrastructure in Gaza has been destroyed. In the face of international calls for an immediate cease-fire, the US advocates a "temporary pause", which would allow Israel to continue its military operations that in turn would worsen the humanitarian crisis. The US places Israel's interests above international humanitarian law, and prioritizes the security of the Jewish people over the life of the Palestinian people, including innocent children. The "temporary pause" the US is advocating is not only hypocritical but also inhumane, highlighting the level of double standard the US can resort to.

The US' vocal and unconditional support for Israel means "green lighting "Israel's military operations in Gaza. While the US has verbally called for a halt to the conflict, in practice, it is playing the role of an enabler. In fact, describing the US a party to the conflict would not be an exaggeration.

The US has been providing Israel with combat supplies, and has deployed high-ranking US military officers in Israel for taking part in combat planning and extending intelligence support to the Israeli military. It is also offering advice to the Israeli government on post-Hamas governance in Gaza, has dispatched two aircraft carrier strike groups and 2,000 US troops to the Middle East to "encourage" Israel to continue its military operations, vetoed or opposed cease-fire resolutions at the United Nations, and asked Arab countries to cooperate with it to "stabilize "the situation.

Washington's strategy and actions are evidence of it being involved in the conflict. Given the enormity of the tragedy in Gaza, even former US president Barack Obama couldn't turn a blind eye to the one-sided conflict. Obama said that in such a massacre, you have to admit nobody's hands are clean, that all of us are complicit to some degree. He also said the Middle East conflict is a "moral reckoning on all of us".

Indeed, the doublespeak and double standard the US resorts to on humanitarian issues also expose its failure to resolve the Israel-Palestine conflict and advance the peace process in the Middle East, mainly because of its pro-Israel policy.

It is the US' blind support for Israel that has encouraged Israel to act with impunity, and made it difficult to implement UN Security Council and General Assembly resolutions on the Palestinian question and uphold international law.

A spokesperson for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs recently said that the catastrophic humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip is a moral question for humankind and a violation of the fundamental international relations principles. Given these facts, the international community should not allow such a tragedy to play out every day.

A recent emergency session of the UN General Assembly, with an overwhelming majority, passed a resolution calling for an immediate humanitarian cease-fire, and reaffirming that the "two-state solution" is the best way to restore peace in the Gaza Strip. This reflects the sentiment of the international community.

The Palestinian issue is at the core of the Middle East problem and, once again, threatens the security and stability in the region. Without the Palestinian question being solved and restoration of lasting peace, the Middle East will never see peace. The long-standing US policy of blindly supporting Israel not only constitutes a major obstacle to peace but also is a significant source of the ongoing turmoil in the Middle East.

The ongoing Israel-Palestine conflict has shown the true colors of the US, severely damaging its reputation. As for the once intensely promoted concept of "humanitarian intervention" by the US and other Western countries, it has been exposed for what it is. As a matter of fact, the US' narrative on democracy and human rights has become a subject of ridicule globally. Protests around the world, including in US cities, are not only directed against Israel's continuous violation of international law and human rights in Gaza but also against the US government's foreign policy which fuels conflicts in the Middle East.

To the Biden administration, we say: for the sake of global peace and stability, it is time to abandon the unpopular and anti-peace strategy.

The author is a researcher of Middle East studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

The views don't necessarily represent those of China Daily.

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