BUCCINO’S “RETHINKING AMERICAN SUPPORT FOR ISRAEL” IS SHEER PANDERING TO ARAB EARS - US influence on Israel is stronger than ever, but Israel isn’t a Banana Republic

By: Joseph Puder

Friday, March 1, 2024

As a columnist in the opinion section of Al-Arabiya English, (a Saudi funded outlet) Joe Buccino is clearly pandering to his Arab audience. In his recent column titled It is Time to rethink American support for Israel, Buccino has deliberately glossed over Israel’s contributions to US security, acknowledged by multiple US presidents and other prominent office holders. But what is particularly problematic about Buccino’s arguments is his distortion of the reality of American-Israeli relations, and his ignoring the Palestinians choice of terror and unwillingness to reach a peace agreement with the Jewish state. While Buccino lists the figure of $300 billion in cumulative US aid to Israel - which does not specify a large portion of which was for repaid loans. The Congressional Research Service puts the total aid figure from 1949-2022 at $150 billion.

Buccino wrote, ”The US-Israel partnership is rooted in several geopolitical and domestic considerations, among them the identification with democracy —though recently, Netanyahu’s right-wing coalition threatens that notion.” Buccino is wrong again. Israel’s democracy is as vibrant as ever, as evidenced by the massive anti-government demonstrations prior to October 7, 2023. Israel’s civil society is likewise strong.

Buccino questioned, how does “American support for Israel advances American interests?” Israel is the front line in the US and the western world’s struggle against radical Islamic terrorism, and previously, during the Cold War, Israel was a buffer against the spread of Soviet Communism and influence in the region. Israeli intelligence and innovations have greatly aided American security throughout the Cold War and into our current situation.

Regrettably, Buccino considers Israel a “banana republic” that should not be responsible for its own security and existential interests - instead - they should adhere to US interests regardless of the threats to its own survival. Buccino argued that considering the U.S.’s longtime support for Israel, the US should have the “ability to influence Israel.” He continued, “That does not seem to be the case. President Joe Biden criticized Israel over its indiscriminate bombing that has thus far flattened large swaths of Gaza.”

Firstly, no other state in the UN has voted with the US more consistently than Israel - at 100%. Secondly, the war with Hamas is for Israel an existential war. Every house and building in Gaza is controlled by Hamas and used to fire rockets into Israel. And if Hamas’s ability to continue firing rockets indiscriminately at Israelis isn’t curbed, Israeli residents of the communities surrounding Gaza will not return to rebuild their homes destroyed by Hamas terrorists on October 7. Furthermore, it would mean the very end of the Zionist ethos - which was about securely settling the persecuted Jews of the Diaspora in their ancestral home.

It seems to me that Israelis on the ground are more realistic about the situation around them. They are cognizant of the fact that Hamas top officials have vowed to repeat the brutal massacres of October 7 over and over again. And, in the case of President Joe Biden’s admonition to stop “indiscriminate bombing,” no army has been more careful to avoid civilian casualties than the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). Buccino of all people should understand that Hamas is using human shields and placing rockets in homes, schools, and hospitals, which the IDF recently uncovered for the world to see.

Unlike Buccino’s assertion that the “devastation in Gaza threatens to damage American standing in the world,” the Biden administration has in fact tied Israel’s hands and thus preventing them from eliminating Hamas from Gaza - actions of a half-hearted ally.

Hamas and its ideological partner, Iran, are just as much an enemy of the US and western democracies as they are Israel’s enemies. Letting Hamas come out of Gaza intact, would strengthen the anti-American coalition of dictators in Beijing, Moscow, Pyongyang, and Tehran.

Buccino warns of the consequences of US support for Israel’s war in Gaza on the Arab world. “The long-term harm to American interest in the region is unknowable.” Buccino should recall that when President Trump moved the US embassy in Israel to Jerusalem in 2018 and recognized Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, many warned of the consequences, including Palestinians violence, which did not occur. Instead, two years later the Abraham Accords were signed in Washington that brought a warm peace between Israel and four Arab states: Bahrain, United Arab Emirates, Morocco, and Sudan.

In his final paragraph, Buccino pointed out that “The imperviousness of Israel to US influence risks America’s standing in the international community, particularly in the Middle East. The time has come for the US to demand more accountability and alignment with its principles in exchange for its support…” In fact, Israel sacrificed the early defeat of Hamas by following the US demand that Israel provide the entry of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip. This very humanitarian aid, which Hamas operatives have stolen from the people, including fuel, food, and medicine, has sustained the fighting capabilities of Hamas who otherwise would have surrendered as many Hamas fighters did in the early stages of the war, or would have been taken out by the IDF.

America has no better friend or more loyal ally in the world than Israel. Along with the shared values, Israel and Israelis emulate America in every way possible, and it is always seeking to please Washington. Occasionally, like in the case of Iran’s nuclear deal, Israel was critical because it gave Iran a pathway to nuclear weapons, which constitutes a mortal threat to Israel’s existence. And, even in this case, Israel refrained from attacking Iran’s nuclear facilities in order to comply with Washington’s wishes.

Nikki Haley summed it up best during the Republican debate and in response to Vivek Ramaswamy, stating, “America needs Israel. It’s not just that Israel needs America. They are the front line of defense when it comes to taking on Islamic terrorism. They’re the front line of defense when it comes to taking on Iran. They’ve been amazing partners with us. And as President, I will absolutely have the backs of Israel so that they can have the back of America.”