The Bottom Line

Does Israel need to be forced by the US to end the war in Gaza?

Palestinian politician Mustafa Barghouti and US professor Ian Lustick dissect Biden’s refusal to end the war in Gaza.

All of Israel’s modern wars have ended with US intervention, but the current war in Gaza has gone on for half a year because “Biden is a slow learner”, argues University of Pennsylvania political scientist Ian Lustick.

Israel needs an outside power to blame when it cannot achieve its aims. “That’s because the war aims are fundamentally political, and the military cannot achieve them,” says Lustick.

Lustick and Palestinian politician Mustafa Barghouti talk to host Steve Clemons about the current situation on the ground and the debate within the Democratic Party in the United States.