Understanding the U.S. Role in the Israel-Hamas War

Why It Matters

Council on Foreign Relations

News

4.2 • 876 Ratings

🗓️ 22 November 2023

⏱️ 30 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas are again at war. The most recent iteration of the conflict, which erupted after Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, has stoked public debate throughout the world. In the United States, heated debates about the issue have played out at universities, in boardrooms, and on social media. Thus far, the U.S. government has strongly supported Israel’s right to defend itself, sending warships and high-ranking officials to the region, but concerns are mounting about the civilian death toll and humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip. U.S. support for Israel is not new, but it has grown increasingly controversial, particularly among young people. Still, experts are skeptical that shifting U.S. public opinion of Israel and the Palestinian territories will influence the war’s trajectory. Featured Guest: Steven A. Cook (Eni Enrico Mattei Senior Fellow for Middle East and Africa Studies) For an episode transcript and show notes, visit us at https://www.cfr.org/podcasts/understanding-us-role-israel-hamas-war

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	So in this moment we must be crystal clear. We stand with Israel. In a show of
0:09.2	force the Pentagon is moving the U.S.S. Gerald Ford. That is the Navy's newest and most advanced
0:15.4	aircraft carrier closer to Israel.
0:17.8	Call on all country, particularly those with the greatest capacity to give, to join us
0:21.8	in meeting the U.N's appeal for the humanitarian situation in Gaza.
0:25.6	This is a tough issue.
0:26.6	I've been four wars there in the last 15 years and ain't going to be solved tomorrow.
0:31.0	But why do we do our best to support Israel and destroy Hamas? Please let us not turn
0:36.6	our back on the suffering people in Gaza. Israel and
0:48.0	Hamas are again at war
0:50.0	ordinary people in Israel, the West Bank, and Gaza are mourning the loss of their
0:56.1	friends and family.
0:58.0	According to Israeli officials, 1,200 Israelis were killed when Hamas attacked on October 7th.
1:05.1	Israel has since mounted an offensive to eliminate Hamas that has killed more than 12,000
1:10.6	people in Gaza, with tens of thousands more injured
1:14.1	according to estimates by Palestinian public health officials and
1:17.8	international observers. At the same time more than 200 Israeli
1:22.4	hostages are still missing and there is no clear end to
1:26.4	the war in sight. Neither is there a long-term solution to the overall Israeli
1:31.5	Palestinian conflict which has been unfolding since Israel to the overall Israeli-Palestinian conflict,
1:33.1	which has been unfolding since Israel's creation 75 years ago,
1:37.5	and which touches on questions that are thousands of years old.
	...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Council on Foreign Relations, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of Council on Foreign Relations and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.