Jacob Magid is The Times of Israel's US bureau chief
An interactive Gaza map issued by the IDF splits the Strip into hundreds of zones. The IDF said December 1, 2023, that it will be used to notify Palestinian civilians of active combat zones. (Screenshot)
WASHINGTON — White House National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby suggests that some of the steps the IDF has taken to prevent civilian casualties in Gaza might go further than what the US would have done if it were in Israel’s place.
Kirby highlights the map the IDF published alerting civilians as to which neighborhoods it is planning to attack, so that they can evacuate ahead of time.
“That’s basically telegraphing your punches. There are very few modern militaries in the world that would do that. I don’t know that we would do that,” Kirby says during a press briefing.
White House National Security Council Coordinator For Strategic Communications John Kirby buttons his jacket before talking to reporters in the Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House on December 13, 2023 in Washington, (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images/AFP)
The White House spokesperson is one of several officials in US President Joe Biden’s administration who appear to be trying to walk back or soften the message voiced by the president yesterday, when he characterized Israel’s bombing campaign against Hamas in Gaza as “indiscriminate.”
Kirby says Israel has also reduced its airstrikes in the south, relying more on ground forces than it did in northern Gaza.
“They moved into southern Gaza on the ground in a way that was much smaller than they planned to do,” Kirby says. “We think that was an output of some of the advice and counsel we provided them about urban warfare.”
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