A military veteran with a tour in Iraq and over a decade of State Division postings throughout Asia, Mike Casey started his project in Jerusalem with the optimism of a seasoned diplomat. Armed with two years of Arabic coaching and the hope {that a} new administration would possibly deliver change, Casey believed his work might make a distinction.By the point he resigned in 2024, Casey was deeply disillusioned. Serving because the State Division’s deputy political counsellor on Gaza, he grew to become an unwilling witness to what he later described as a scientific failure of US overseas coverage.Casey instructed The Guardian that the extra he discovered in regards to the Israel-Gaza concern, the extra it grew to become unattainable to disregard its gravity. His position as certainly one of simply two US officers explicitly centered on Gaza coverage uncovered him to the relentless human toll of the battle. Casey stated he felt overwhelmed by the futility of repeatedly documenting the deaths of youngsters and proving these casualties to Washington, solely to see no motion taken in response.
A Gradual Construct of Disillusionment
Casey’s duties included documenting Gaza’s humanitarian and political circumstances by means of categorised experiences and cables. He grew more and more pissed off by what he noticed because the systemic dismissal of his findings by Washington. He recalled how colleagues would joke that even attaching money to the each day updates wouldn’t get them seen. The most recent UN figures illustrate the disaster Casey grappled with: over 45,000 Palestinians killed, 90% of the inhabitants displaced, and circumstances bordering on famine. Even worldwide authorized interventions, reminiscent of orders from the Worldwide Court docket of Justice, did not halt the devastation.
A Damaged Planning Course of
Casey and his colleagues confronted repeated roadblocks of their makes an attempt to develop complete post-war reconstruction methods. They proposed measures to offer humanitarian assist, strengthen governance, and improve safety in Gaza. These included connecting Gaza with the West Financial institution, empowering the Palestinian Authority, and ultimately holding elections.Nonetheless, Casey described how every plan was routinely dismissed in favour of Israeli-backed options that he discovered not solely impractical however actively dangerous—reminiscent of proposals to let native clans govern Gaza. He defined that his staff wrote quite a few experiences detailing why such plans would fail and emphasised that permitting warlords to take management in Gaza was not within the US’s curiosity.
US-Israel Relations: A Basic Impediment
Casey’s frustrations prolonged past the bureaucratic dismissal of his concepts. He believed the US’s distinctive relationship with Israel posed a big roadblock to efficient diplomacy. He contrasted the leverage the US utilized in negotiations with nations like Malaysia and Pakistan—the place sanctions or suspended assist have been choices—with the deference he noticed towards Israel. He claimed that Israeli negotiators might lengthen discussions indefinitely, figuring out the US would ultimately acquiesce to their calls for.This disparity was starkly mirrored in monetary figures: whereas Palestinians obtained $674 million in US assist in 2024, Israel benefited from a file $17.9 billion in army help.
Disappointment with the Biden Administration
Casey initially hoped the Biden administration would take a extra balanced method in comparison with its predecessor, however he felt let down at each flip. Probably the most demoralising moments got here when President Biden publicly questioned Gaza casualty figures that Casey himself had documented. For Casey, this raised doubts in regards to the worth of his work when such knowledge was disregarded so simply.By July 2024, Casey determined he might not proceed in his position. He admitted feeling too embarrassed to stay an American diplomat, believing he might not perform successfully in any future project.
A Systemic Failure
Now far faraway from diplomacy, Casey works at a neighborhood financial institution in Michigan. Nonetheless, his criticisms of US overseas coverage stay deeply private. He sees a systemic failure that extends past any single administration, arguing that the shortage of a coherent technique towards Palestinians in the end harms Israelis too. Reflecting on his expertise, Casey summarised his evaluation of US coverage in a single stark conclusion: the US has no actual coverage on Palestine and merely follows Israel’s lead.
