Matthew Miller, who served as the public face of US foreign policy under President Joe Biden from 2023 until early 2025, has said for the first time that it was "without a doubt true that Israel has committed war crimes" in Gaza.
Miller’s comments, made during an appearance on Sky News’s 'Trump 100' podcast, mark the most direct acknowledgement from a senior official in the Biden administration - one who remained in post until Donald Trump’s inauguration - that Israel violated international law during its war on Gaza.
Throughout his time in office, however, Miller had repeatedly defended Israeli actions and refused to describe them as war crimes, even as civilian deaths mounted. Critics often pointed to his cold and legalistic tone when responding to questions about the mass killing of Palestinian civilians, characterising his performance as indifferent to the scale of human suffering.
Notably, in July 2024, Miller came under fire during a State Department briefing when he was accused of "smirking" while responding to questions about the rising death toll in Gaza. Journalist Sam Husseini challenged him directly, saying, "You’re smirking as you say that... are you aware?" Miller dismissed the remark, stating he would not "entertain" the accusation.
Asked on the podcast whether he believed Israel was committing genocide, Miller replied: "I don’t believe it’s genocide, but I have no doubt that war crimes have been committed."
Pressed on why he did not say so publicly while in office, he responded: "When you're at the podium, you don't express your personal opinion. You represent the conclusions of the US government, which to this day has not stated that Israel committed war crimes."
"A spokesperson’s strength lies in not speaking for themselves but on behalf of the president and administration. Once out of the office, you’re free to speak personally," he added.
Miller also criticised Israel’s lack of accountability for its military conduct.
"We know Israeli soldiers committed acts that could constitute war crimes, and that investigations were opened months ago. But no one has been held accountable to this day."
"There are two ways to think about war crimes," he explained.
"One is whether a state adopts a policy of deliberately committing them, or acts recklessly in ways that facilitate such crimes. That remains an open question in Israel’s case. The other is about individual incidents - acts that clearly qualify as war crimes committed by soldiers. Israel opened investigations, but so far, no one has been punished."
He also acknowledged internal divisions within the Biden administration over its support for Israel, including discussions about halting arms shipments.
"In spring 2024, we suspended a shipment of 900-pound bombs because we didn't believe they were being used appropriately in Gaza. There were discussions about halting other arms transfers, but we found ourselves in an extremely difficult position."
Miller said it was clear to the US that growing criticism - both at home and internationally - had shaped Hamas's strategy.
"The public debate about withholding weapons from Israel, protests at US universities, and European moves to recognise a Palestinian state led Hamas leaders to believe they didn’t need to agree to a ceasefire. They just needed to hold out a little longer to get what they wanted."
Miller did not acknowledge the fact that Hamas agreed to Biden's May 2024 ceasefire, while Israel did not and continued to bombard and further invade Gaza.
He concluded with a moment of reflection: "I often ask myself whether there was more we could have done to pressure Israel into a ceasefire between May 2024 and the start of this year - a period in which thousands of innocent Palestinian civilians with no role in the war were killed. And the answer is: probably, at times, there was."