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In the face of criticism, the United States uses a familiar foreign policy tool

2023-11-17 22:14:10, Kosova & Bota CNA

As pressure on Israel mounts due to the increased death toll in Gaza and footage of Palestinian suffering floods social media, the United States is turning to a time-tested tool in its foreign policy tradition: publishing of discovery information.

The White House and the Pentagon announced Tuesday that the United States has information that supports Israel's claims that Hamas, which Washington has long designated as a terrorist organization, was using the Shifa hospital in Gaza as a command center for organizing attacks against Israel. .

"We have information confirming that Hamas is using the hospital in question as a command and control node," National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters traveling with President Biden.

"They have weapons stored there and are ready to respond to an Israeli military operation in this compound," Pentagon spokeswoman Sabrina Signh said, adding that the Shifa hospital was just one of the hospitals used by Hamas and its allied Jihad group. Palestinian Islamists "to hide, conduct their own military operations and hold hostages."

This tactic of releasing intelligence information – which the White House considers part of strategic communication – is increasingly turning into a tool that President Biden's administration is using whenever it needs to influence international public opinion.

The most well-known and earliest use of this tactic came in the run-up to Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, when the White House quickly released and shared with allies and the public evidence of Russia's military build-up, mobilize support for Ukraine.

The White House also used the method to counter China's claims of a spy balloon that flew over much of the United States earlier this year and to defuse a potential crisis in Mali fueled by the group's mercenaries. Russian paramilitary Wagner.

And now, in the case of Israel.

"We thought it was important for the world to know exactly how Hamas has chosen to hide behind the civilian population and use civilians, including those in hospitals, as human shields," a senior US official told VOA on the condition that his name shall not be mentioned.

The selection of Shifa hospital in particular "as a place to plan military operations," according to the official, "is a violation of the laws of war."

The announcements from the White House and the Pentagon were met with skepticism on social media platforms, where accusations were leveled at the United States that it was lying to try to cover up damage from Israel's attacks, or that its assessments were only supporting claims. of Israel.

Hamas also rejected Washington's accusations.

"We strongly condemn and oppose these statements," Hamas said in a statement released Tuesday on the group's Telegram channel. "These statements give the Israeli occupier the green light to carry out more brutal massacres."

After several hours, Israeli forces began what they called a "precision operation, targeting" Hamas fighters in Shifa.

The US official told VOA that the timing of the start of the Israeli operation with the statements made by the White House and the Pentagon was a coincidence.

"The release (of intelligence information) has nothing to do with the time frame of the operation, or any decision-making process by the Israeli Armed Forces," an official stated. "We don't want to see bombings, or fighting in hospitals, and we believe that patients and civilians should be protected."

Other US officials also denied allegations that Washington's assessment was based on Israeli intelligence, saying the US assessment was based on information gathered by several US agencies.

The Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday that the US assessment that Hamas was using Shifa as its base of operations came in part from wiretapping of communications between militants inside the hospital complex.

Former intelligence officials and analysts interviewed by VOA said that usually the American assessment is based on communications intercepts, known as "SIGINT" and people who serve as sources of information.

"One of the ways to come to such information is to have confirmed it with a reliable Hamas source, which means that you had a source who told you something like that, or because you came across a wiretapping that revealed such information," a former Western counterterrorism official told VOA on condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the intelligence gathering.

The United States is able to intercept the communications of members of Hamas. In early November, the Pentagon confirmed it had launched unarmed drones over Gaza on October 7 to help find hostages taken during the Hamas terror attack.

Larry Pfeiffer, former chief of staff of the Central Intelligence Agency, CIA, and former senior director of the White House Situation Room, told VOA that the United States also has the ability to use information gathered from satellites, such as and cyber capabilities to pinpoint how Hamas is operating.

"The statement from the National Security Council and the Pentagon was quite convincing," he said. "It makes me think that there is strong evidence that has come out of intelligence gathered by the American side, or by the Israeli side, that has been independently verified."

Israel on Wednesday evening began releasing footage and other evidence from the operation at Shifa hospital, which it said corroborated Israeli and US assessments that Hamas had used the hospital as a command center. The footage shows bags, automatic rifles, ammunition, grenades and uniforms, as well as weapons and other equipment.

Like statements by US institutions, Israel's claims were met with skepticism on social media, with some accusing Israel of fabricating the evidence.

But some former intelligence officials told VOA that the evidence provided by Israel should not be ignored.

"The videos of the Israeli armed forces showing the weapons found in Shifa are nevertheless weighty because they prove how Hamas exploited the hospital, which technically constitutes a war crime," said former senior CIA official Marc Polymeropoulos, of who has spent part of his career working in the Middle East.

"However, given that the United States and Israel claim that an important Hamas command node existed within the hospital, additional evidence, such as footage of the tunnels under the hospital, will be needed to support the claims of the intelligence services and to ease international concerns," he added.

Still, Mr. Polymeropoulos and other former officials believe the United States' decision to release intelligence about Hamas' use of hospitals will have an impact, even if it will take more time to take effect.

"Clearly it was done this way to give some space to the Israelis," said former official Polymeropoulos.

"The information is aimed at a global audience, because of international but also domestic outrage," he said, noting that President Biden's administration is facing increased domestic criticism for its unwavering support for the Israel campaign.

The former Western counter-terrorism official also pointed out that the United States' decision to back up Israel's claims with American intelligence could buy Israel some time with Arab and Muslim governments, where patience is wearing thin. it fades.

"Maybe this is the moment in the conflict when people start to waver," according to the official. "The release of the intelligence information clearly helps set the context for why Israel has to respond the way it has."/ VOA