Will America pull the plug on Israel’s invasion of Gaza?
fire. But administration officials have made clear, in a series of leaks, that they doubt Israel has a coherent exit strategy in Gaza. They complain that Mr Netanyahu is barely willing to discuss the topic, and say they want to put their concerns on the record now lest the war end badly.
To think a war risks becoming a quagmire but to support it nonetheless is an untenable position—especially when American voters agree. A poll by The Economist and YouGov found that a plurality of Americans (41%) believe Mr Biden is handling the war badly. A Quinnipiac survey of registered voters found that 51% of independents and 66% of people aged 18 to 34 disapprove of his policy.
His ratings have plummeted amongst Arab-American voters, which could hurt him next year in crucial swing states like Michigan. Sources in Washington think it will still be several more weeks before Mr Biden pivots to talk of a truce—but do not doubt that he will make such a shift. Arab states certainly hope so.
Fears of a multi-front war, which were acute in the days after Hamas’s massacre, have eased. Hizbullah, the Lebanese Shia militia, continues to fire rockets daily at Israel, but Hassan Nasrallah, the group’s leader, signalled in a speech on November 3rd that he was not yet interested in all-out war. The Houthis, a Shia militant group in Yemen, have lobbed drones and missiles at Israel but are too far away to pose a strategic threat.
Many autocrats across the Middle East would be happy to see Israel smash Hamas. But they are also nervous that the war will mobilise their subjects, many of whom are already restive about awful economic conditions. This adds to pressure on both America, which has heard their fears for weeks now, and Israel, which is keen to
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