Biden’s support for Israel is qualified: he means to hold Netanyahu to the law of war | Yossi Mekelberg

The president has a frosty history with Israel's PM, and he has emphasised that US backing depends on the upholding of democratic values

President Biden's response to the murderous attack by Hamas on Israeli towns, villages and kibbutzim that claimed more than 1,200 Israeli lives, the majority of them civilians, was one of the most heartfelt expressions of support for Israel by a US president for a very long time. His speech on 10 October emphasised that Washington would not confine its backing for the Jewish state to words, and would immediately translate those words into tangible assistance. But Biden's pledge of surging" support, including sending aircraft carriers to deter hostile actions against Israel" - is not without caveats, to which Israel should pay careful heed. Over the weekend, Biden wisely warned Israel against occupying Gaza, and expressed his support for opening a humanitarian corridor to alleviate the humanitarian catastrophe that is already taking place.

It is no secret that US-Israel relations have been strained since Benjamin Netanyahu returned to power at the end of last year. The US administration has been openly critical of the crass attempt to weaken the country's judiciary, and with it Israel's democratic system, by the newly formed, most rightwing government coalition in its history. Indirectly supporting the hundreds of thousands of Israelis who have been regularly taking to the streets in defence of their democracy, Biden linked US friendship with Israel to the preservation of that democracy, and asserted that: The genius of American democracy and Israeli democracy is that they are both built on strong institutions, on checks and balances, on an independent judiciary."