--- title: Biden Administration Says Israel's Rafah Offensive Still Isn't a ‘Major Operation’ | TIME description: The United States and other allies of Israel have warned against a full-fledged offensive in the city, with the Biden administration saying this would cross a “red line” and refusing to provide offensive arms for such an undertaking. On Tuesday, U.S. State Department spokesman Matthew Miller gave no indication the administration sees Israel as crossing any of the red lines for Rafah, saying the offensive is still on a “far different” scale than assaults on other population centers in Gaza. canonical: https://time.com/video/xPwBsKDZ/ og:title: Biden Administration Says Israel's Rafah Offensive Still Isn't a ‘Major Operation’ og:description: The United States and other allies of Israel have warned against a full-fledged offensive in the city, with the Biden administration saying this would cross a “red line” and refusing to provide offensive arms for such an undertaking. On Tuesday, U.S. State Department spokesman Matthew Miller gave no indication the administration sees Israel as crossing any of the red lines for Rafah, saying the offensive is still on a “far different” scale than assaults on other population centers in Gaza. og:url: https://time.com/video/xPwBsKDZ/ og:image: https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/xPwBsKDZ/poster.jpg?width=720 og:type: video.other twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Biden Administration Says Israel's Rafah Offensive Still Isn't a ‘Major Operation’ twitter:description: The United States and other allies of Israel have warned against a full-fledged offensive in the city, with the Biden administration saying this would cross a “red line” and refusing to provide offensive arms for such an undertaking. On Tuesday, U.S. State Department spokesman Matthew Miller gave no indication the administration sees Israel as crossing any of the red lines for Rafah, saying the offensive is still on a “far different” scale than assaults on other population centers in Gaza. twitter:image: https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/xPwBsKDZ/poster.jpg?width=720 --- * World # Biden Administration Says Israel's Rafah Offensive Still Isn't a ‘Major Operation’ > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME Subscription: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition TIME is a general-interest news organization founded in 1923, reporting on the people, ideas and issues shaping the world. A TIME subscription provides full access to that journalism in print and digital, from $20 a year, and can be cancelled at any time. 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They are at time.com/newsletters and are separate from a paid subscription. ## Video: Biden Administration Says Israel's Rafah Offensive Still Isn't a ‘Major Operation’ [Watch (HLS stream): Biden Administration Says Israel's Rafah Offensive Still Isn't a ‘Major Operation’](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/xPwBsKDZ.m3u8) (2:53)  _Published 2024-05-30. The United States and other allies of Israel have warned against a full-fledged offensive in the city, with the Biden administration saying this would cross a “red line” and refusing to provide offensive arms for such an undertaking. On Tuesday, U.S. State Department spokesman Matthew Miller gave no indication the administration sees Israel as crossing any of the red lines for Rafah, saying the offensive is still on a “far different” scale than assaults on other population centers in Gaza._ --- Jun 3, 2024 1:44 PM UTC --- ## More From This Series [All Videos](https://time.com/video/) [Top U.N. Court Orders Israel to Halt Military Offensive in Rafah](/video/0vWjinX8/) ### Top U.N. Court Orders Israel to Halt Military Offensive in Rafah [WHO Director-General is 'Deeply Concerned About Israel’s Increased Military Activities in Rafah'](/video/iic4Y9qO/) ### WHO Director-General is 'Deeply Concerned About Israel’s Increased Military Activities in Rafah' [What to Know About U.S. Military Support for Israel’s Gaza Offensive](/video/cgtJ4g8m/) ### What to Know About U.S. Military Support for Israel’s Gaza Offensive --- ## Transcript The truth of the facts on the ground are is that we have yet to see a major military operation in ToaFa. As I said, we have seen an uptick in military operations at the border in the Philadelphia corridor and in the outskirts, but we have not seen a major operation into Gaza. We are into RFA, I'm sorry. We will continue to monitor conditions, and we will continue to see what happens. Clear about what this isn't, which is not a major military operation. I'm not going to categorize it into one box or another. This is obviously a very dynamic and fluid situation. We're going to continue to consult with our partners in Israel and engage on these issues. Of course, at every measure, we have continued to stress the moral and strategic imperative to make sure that these military operations are conducted in a way that minimize civilian casualties. Obviously, just based on the imagery, the events of this past weekend failed to meet that mark. Regardless of the origin of this weapon and regardless of what the weapon was that was used, it is devastating to see the images and the videos and the imagery that we saw from over the weekend. And that is why we went to the Israels as soon as we were made aware of this about answers about how this incident happened, why the level of civilian harm took place, even though it was not necessarily the intent. It is imbalanced, and it fails to note a simple fact, which is that Hamas is to blame for this conflict, and fighting in Rafa could end tomorrow if Hamas agreed to a deal for a cease fire and the release of hostages. It's important that the United Nations not erase Hans's role from this conflict or ignore its repeated violations of international law. We have urged Israel to allow increased assistance into Gaza through as many points as possible and to ensure the safe and secure distribution of aid throughout the region. We've also called for consistent access through Rafa and Karam Shalon crossings to prevent harm to civilians reliant on aid, and we're continuing to work with partners in Israel and Egypt to do everything we can to ensure as many of those crossings as possible are as open and conserve as conduits for additional humanitarian aid No one across this administration has ever made the case that it is enough. I'm not saying that today, but it is because of American engagement that we are seeing some small steps in the right direction and we have, and we will continue to press our partners in Israel when we have seen things that do not meet the mark. ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Biden Administration Says Israel's Rafah Offensive Still Isn't a ‘Major Operation’","description":"The United States and other allies of Israel have warned against a full-fledged offensive in the city, with the Biden administration saying this would cross a “red line” and refusing to provide offensive arms for such an undertaking. 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