Dissent, and a generation gap, inside the U.S. government over Israel

Administration officials say they do not take Palestinian deaths lightly and have worked around the clock to try to bring more humanitarian aid to Gaza. White House officials have also pointed to an ongoing lull in fighting, which extended into Thursday, as evidence that their diplomatic efforts have helped secure the release of dozens of hostages held by Hamas and opened the door to more humanitarian assistance for the besieged Palestinian population. from Gaza.

‘A policy that has not led to peace’

So far, only one State Department employee has resigned over the issue, according to the department.

Josh Paul, former head of the department’s political-military affairs office, resigned in protest in October, saying he could not accept the United States giving weapons to Israel without stricter conditions.

“On October 18, I resigned from the State Department because I could not support the supply of American weapons to the Gaza conflict, where I knew they would be used to kill thousands of civilians,” Paul wrote in an op-ed. in The New York Times. “I saw no willingness to reassess a long-term policy that has not led to peace and has in fact undermined both regional stability and Israeli security.”

Since 1970, the State Department has had an official mechanism for diplomats to formally express disagreement with a policy, known as the “dissent channel.” But that channel is strictly confidential, and Foreign Service officers are not supposed to publicly share the details of their dissent.

According to two US officials, at least three dissenting cables have been presented to State Department leaders.

The State Department and USAID say they are aware that some employees have concerns about the administration’s policies on the war between Israel and Hamas and have written to employees encouraging a “frank” exchange.

“We have hosted forums in Washington to hear from you, and we urge managers and teams to have candid discussions in positions around the world precisely so that we can hear your comments and ideas,” Blinken said in an internal letter to employees earlier this month. this month. “I asked our senior leadership to continue doing that. We are listening: what you share informs our policy and our messages.”

The American Foreign Service Association, the State Department’s diplomatic corps union, said it was “encouraged” by the way the administration has responded to domestic dissent.

“We know there has been some concern about the current policy, particularly from members of Arab and Muslim American employee organizations at the State Department and elsewhere,” said association president Tom Yazdgerdi.

“We know that these employee groups met with Secretary Blinken and other members of the state leadership. This is crucial because dissenting opinions especially need to be heard and we hope they are taken into account,” he stated.