WASHINGTON: US secretaries of state and defence warned on Sunday that the fighting between Israel and Hamas could lead to a broader conflict throughout the Middle East and America will retaliate if its troops were attacked.

The two senior most members of the Biden administration used Sunday talk shows to claim that Iran and its proxies wanted to widen the conflict, but the United States would do what it can to prevent this.

“If any group or any country is looking to widen this conflict and take advantage of this very unfortunate situation that we see, our advice is: don’t,” US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin told ABC News. “We maintain the right to defend ourselves, and we won’t hesitate to take the appropriate action,” he warned.

In an interview with CBS News, US Secretary of Antony Blinken was asked if “very high tensions” could force Washington to pull US personnel out of the area. “We are concerned at the possibility of Iranian proxies, escalating their attacks against our own personnel, our own people. We’re taking every measure to make sure that we can defend them and if necessary, respond decisively,” Secretary Blinken said.

Commenting on the possibility of withdrawing US personnel from the region, he said the United States did not want further escalation but was ready for it. “Not at all what we’re looking for, not all we want, but we’ll be prepared, if that’s what they choose to do,” he said.

Secretary Blinken further explained this point in another interview to NBC News, saying: “We are concerned. In fact, we expect that there’s a likelihood of escalation, escalation by Iranian proxies directed against our forces, directed against our personnel.” The United States, he said, was taking steps to make sure that it can “effectively defend our people and respond decisively if we need to.”

In this interview, Mr Blinken also discussed Gaza’s future, saying that while Israel did not want to restore the situation that existed before Hamas’ Oct 7 raid, it did not want to govern Gaza once the war was over.

“One thing’s for sure. Israel cannot go back to the status quo. And again, no country would be able to accept that,” said Mr Blinken when asked who would govern Gaza once the war was over. “At the same time, what I’ve heard from the Israeli’s is absolutely no intent, no desire to be running Gaza themselves.”

“So, something needs to be found that ensures that Hamas can’t do this again, but that also doesn’t revert to Israeli governance of Gaza, which they do not want and do not intend to do,” he explained.

“There are different ideas out there about what could follow. But all of that, I think, needs to be worked on. And it’s something that needs to be worked on even as Israel is dealing with the current threat.”

Both secretaries were reminded of Jordan’s King Abdullah II’s remarks this weekend calling the war in Gaza a “collective punishment of a besieged and helpless people.”

In his impassioned speech, the King of Jordan also said that “Palestinian lives seem to matter less than Israeli ones. Our lives matter less than other lives, the application of international law is optional and human rights appear to have boundaries based on races and religions.”

Secretary Blinken, while responding to the king’s remarks said: “Every life- Palestinian, Israeli, Jewish, Muslim, Arab, every life has equal worth.”

He also recalled the killing of a six-year-old Palestinian child in Chicago last week, noting that he was murdered mercilessly, although he had nothing to do with the conflict.

“But this is on Hamas. And the fact is, Hamas doesn’t represent the Palestinian people. It doesn’t represent their just cause, it doesn’t represent their aspiration, and legitimate aspiration for a state,” said the chief US diplomat.

Both secretaries said Israel would continue its ground offensive to ensure that it did not face the Oct 7 like situation again but Secretary Austin acknowledged that it would be difficult for Israel to do so.

Secretary Austin, however, said any military operation to remove Hamas from Gaza would be difficult for Israel given that the territory was densely populated and urban, where combat is “extremely difficult” and “goes at a slow pace,” and Hamas utilises a large network of underground tunnels.

Published in Dawn, October 23rd, 2023