Behind the U.S. Letter – and Ultimatum – To Israel

DEEP DIVE — It’s one of those “private” documents that was almost certainly written for public consumption. A spokesman for Secretary of State Antony Blinken insisted that the stern letter from Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin to Israeli leaders, dated Sunday and quickly leaked to Israel’s Channel 12, was “not about making any kind of threats.” 

“It’s about seeing the situation reversed,” State spokesman Matthew Miller said, “so that the civilians in Gaza who are not getting adequate access to food and medicine and other humanitarian goods today actually see as a result of our efforts a change in their daily lives.”