American reporters hammered the State Department on Wednesday on Israel’s apparent exclusion of pasta as being part of humanitarian aid. In further questioning by CNN reporter Elise Labott, she claimed that Israel may not be honoring a ceasefire agreement by limiting aid, although no such agreement exists. The State Department did not correct her.
Israel has prohibited materials, such as cement and metal, which can be used for making Kassam rockets and smuggling tunnels. Sugar is allowed although it is a major ingredient for making Kassam rocket fuel.
Congressman Keith Ellison raised the issue of pasta earlier this month during a tour of Gaza, where he learned that the list of approved items to pass through Gaza crossings omits lentils, macaroni, tomato paste, and other common food products. Representative Brian Laird, who accompanied Ellison, asked, "When have lentil bombs been going off lately? Is someone going to kill you with a piece of macaroni?" asked Laird.
The issue of pasta came up again during Sen. John Kerry’s visit to Gaza last Saturday. "Israel does not define pasta as part of humanitarian aid - only rice shipments," a United Nations official told the senator, who raised the issue with Defense Minister Ehud Barak.
The Defense Minister responded by approving pasta as part of aid shipments, according to French news agency AFP, but either reporters at the State Department and the American government itself did not get the word, or Barak’s order was not carried out.
CNN reporter Labott stated that pasta is not an ingredient for humanitarian aid to Gaza and asked Wood if all food and medicine should be allowed. Wood replied that he could not give an 'off the cuff' answer of what should be included as humanitarian aid. He explained that people in the field decide details.
Labott persisted, asking if pasta has a “dual use,” meaning if it can be used for Kassam rocket fuel. The back-and-forth session began to get out of hand when Wood repeated that it is not up to him to “make that kind of determination.”
Members of outgoing Prime Minister Ehud Olmert’s staff have been complaining that the humanitarian aid, such as food is being used as a "political tool,” she claimed. Wood answered, “Aid should never be used a political weapon.”
Labott persisted with a change in tactics that revealed ignorance of events while she also omitted direct mention of Hamas rocket attacks and instead fired away about Israel's prohibition of pasta. After offhandedly mentioning that “obviously, there have been complaints that Hamas is not honoring the ceasefire,” she questioned Israel’s commitments.
“[Is] Israel honoring the ceasefire in terms of allowing the aid and – under their obligations? Are they meeting their obligations?” she asked, even though Israel has no ceasefire agreement with Hamas, and has unilaterally allowed the entry of humanitarian aid despite continuing rocket attacks by Gaza terrorists. Wood also let the question pass without correcting her.
Another reporter chipped in, “Is rigatoni somehow going to be used as a weapon?”
Wood did not view the subject as a laughing matter and finally put an end to the session when Labott asked, “Can you take the question of what kind of food that the U.S. thinks is a humanitarian supply?
Wood decided enough was enough and answered, “I’m not going to take that question, because I don’t think it’s a legitimate question.”