US diplomat told not include starving Gaza children in government reports
US diplomats have revealed to media Washington's deep involvement in the war on Gaza, where tens of thousands of children have been killed.
US diplomats have revealed the prominent role Washington plays in the war on Gaza, from supplying the ammunition used in Israeli massacres to blocking details of Palestinian suffering in the besieged enclave.
A US diplomat based in the UAE with two decades of MENA experience, Hala Rharrit, told CBS News' 60 Minutes programme that she was effectively censored in the images and information she provided to the leadership in Washington about what was happening in Gaza.
Rharrit resigned from her position as Dubai Regional Media Hub's deputy director n April 2024 over her government's policy on the Gaza war, and after being told three months into the war that her reports were no longer needed.
"I would show the complicity that was indisputable. Fragments of US bombs next to massacres of.. mostly children. And that's the devastation. It's been overwhelmingly children," she told the broadcaster.
She was told she was effectively told to "shut up" when compiling the reports for the US government illustrating regional perceptions about Washington's role in the war on Gaza, made up of social media messages and Arabic-language articles. She also agreed that the Washinton's stance toward the Gaza war had "put a target on America's back".
"I would show images of children that were starved to death. In one incident, I was basically berated, 'Don't put that image in there. We don't wanna see it. We don't wanna see that the children are starving to death'," she added.
The scenes of children caused Rharrit to break down in tears, including one little girl, Aana al-Farra, whose death particularly affected her.
"One Pan-Arab channel one day did a report on a little girl that had been killed in an airstrike. But they put a picture of the little girl when she was alive," she said. "She has her princess dress, and she's in the picture waving her wand with a huge, beautiful smile. And, you know, I saw my child in that child.
Josh Paul, another leading State Department official who resigned due to the Gaza war, spoke about the prominent role Washington has played in keeping Israel armed, as Lancet reported last week that at least 70,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israel's onslaught on Gaza.
"Most of the bombs come from America. Most of the technology comes from America. And all of the fighter jets, all of Israel's fixed-wing fleet - comes from America," he told the broadcaster.
"There is a linkage between every single bomb that is dropped in Gaza and the US because every single bomb that is dropped is dropped from an American-made plane."
When asked if Israeli airstrikes on Gaza are 'made in America', he responded: "They are."
This included the destruction of a whole neighbourhood in Gaza City shortly after Hamas's 7 October attacks when 100 people were killed including 81 women and children, according to Airwars, with US-made 2,000 pound bombs used in the massacre, sources told CBS.
"The Israelis were using those bombs in some instances to target one or two individuals in densely packed areas. And in enough instances, we saw that was in question, how Israel was using it. And those weapons were suspended," Paul told CBS, referring to President Joe Biden's temporary freeze on 2,000 pound bombs going to Israel.
Andrew Miller, former deputy assistant secretary of state for Israeli-Palestinian affairs who also resigned during the Gaza war, also said Washington had failed to issue any red lights to the Israeli government over the use of American weaponry.
https://www.newarab.com/news/us-diplomat-told-not-include-starving-gaza-children-reports