Israel fumes as Biden signals a harder line against a Rafah ground assault

Israel reacted with a mix of concern and fury Thursday to President Joe Biden's warning that he would cut off weapons to the U.S. ally's military if it moves forward with a full-scale assault on Rafah, the city in southern Gaza where more than 1 million Palestinians are sheltering.

The threat, which marked a shift in Washington's public approach to the war, came after the Biden administration halted a shipment of bombs last week amid concerns over Israel's plans to invade Rafah even as cease-fire talks continue with Hamas. The U.S. has long supplied weapons to Israel, and Biden's warning follows months of growing tensions between the two countries and as the president faces domestic pressure to take a harder line on the war.

Israeli officials appeared in little doubt that the fallout could have far-reaching consequences.

The country’s ambassador to the United Nations, Gilad Erdan, said the U.S. pause was “a very disappointing decision, even frustrating.” He suggested in an interview with Israeli Channel 12 TV news that the move stemmed from pressure Biden felt from both Congress and U.S. college campus protests.

“Israel will continue to fight Hamas until its destruction,” Israeli Foreign Affairs Minister Israel Katz said on X in an apparent response to Biden's threat. “There is no just war like this one.”