Amerika hat das Feuer im Nahen Osten angeheizt

[SS: By Stephen M. Walt, a columnist at *Foreign Policy* and the Robert and Renée Belfer professor of international relations at Harvard University]

Iran’s decision to retaliate against an Israeli attack on its consulate in Damascus, Syria, by launching drone and missile strikes reveals just how badly the Biden administration has mishandled the Middle East. Having [convinced itself](https://www.nytimes.com/2023/10/26/us/politics/jake-sullivan-foreign-affairs-israel-middle-east.html#:~:text=Sullivan%20had%20made%20similar%20public,in%20two%20decades%2C%E2%80%9D%20Mr.) on the eve of Hamas’s Oct. 7, 2023, attack against Israel that the region was “quieter than it has been for decades,” U.S. officials have since responded in ways that made a bad situation worse. The most one can say in their defense is that they have plenty of company; the Trump, Obama, Bush, and Clinton administrations mostly made a hash of things, too.

The administration’s response to Hamas’s brutal attack on Oct. 7 has had three main objectives. First, it has sought to convey steadfast support for Israel: backing it rhetorically, conferring regularly with top Israeli officials, [defending it](https://www.timesofisrael.com/us-says-genocide-charges-unfounded-rejects-israeli-claim-south-africa-serving-hamas/) against [accusations of genocide](https://foreignpolicy.com/2024/02/04/south-africa-icj-case-ruling-israel-hamas-war-palestinians-genocide/), vetoing cease-fire resolutions in the United Nations Security Council, and providing it with a steady supply of lethal armaments. Second, Washington has tried to prevent the conflict in Gaza from escalating. Lastly, it has tried to convince Israel to act with restraint, both to limit harm to Palestinian civilians and to minimize the damage to the United States’ image and reputation.

This policy has failed because its aims were inherently contradictory. Giving Israel unconditional support gave its leaders little incentive to heed U.S. calls for restraint, so it is hardly surprising that they have ignored them. Gaza has been destroyed, at least [33,000 Palestinians](https://time.com/6909636/gaza-death-toll/) (including more than 12,000 children) are now dead, and U.S. officials [now admit](https://www.axios.com/2024/04/11/us-official-famine-northern-gaza) that civilians there are facing conditions of famine. Houthi militias in Yemen, claiming to demand a cease-fire, continue to target shipping in the Red Sea; a low-level conflict between Israel and Hezbollah is still simmering; and violence has [risen sharply](https://www.politico.com/news/2024/04/13/west-bank-violence-missing-teen-body-found-settler-attacks-00152112) in the occupied West Bank. And now Iran has retaliated against the April 1 [bombing](https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/israel-bombs-iran-embassy-syria-iranian-commanders-among-dead-2024-04-01/) of its consulate by launching drone and missile strikes on Israel, raising the prospect of an even wider war.

[Continue reading the full argument here. ](https://foreignpolicy.com/2024/04/15/middle-east-war-crisis-biden-america-iran-israel/)