Biden administration’s Gaza strategy panned as ‘mess’ amid clashing goals

Strain of aiming to influence Israel's actions without leverage and also avoiding starvation is showing, say analysts

• Israeli PM's handling of US relations under scrutiny

The Biden administration's policy on Gaza has been widely criticised as being in disarray as the defense secretary described the situation as a humanitarian catastrophe" the day after the state department declared Israel to be in compliance with international humanitarian law.

Washington was also on the defensive on Tuesday over its claim that a UN security council ceasefire resolution on which it abstained was non-binding, an interpretation that put the US at odds with other member states, international legal scholars and the UN itself.