The Biden administration announced its approval of a $1 billion weapon shipment to Israel just one week after President Joe Biden announced he would withhold a weapons shipment if Israel launched an offensive into Rafah.
The administration notified Congress of the move on Tuesday, the Washington Examiner independently confirmed.
Officials told the Wall Street Journal that the package includes offensive weapons, including $700 million in tank ammunition, $500 million in tactical vehicles, and $60 million in mortar rounds. Additional steps must be taken before the weapons are approved and delivered.
The move was foreshadowed by national security adviser John Kirby, speaking with reporters last week.
“[Biden] also said yesterday that he will continue to ensure that Israel has all of the military means it needs to defend itself against all of its enemies, including Hamas,” he said. “For him, this is very straightforward: He’s going to continue to provide Israel with all of the capabilities it needs, but he does not want certain categories of American weapons used in a particular type of operation in a particular place. And again, he has been clear and consistent with that.”
Kirby further clarified that Israel has not yet launched a Rafah operation that crosses Biden’s red line. Biden said last week he would withhold specific 2,000-pound bombs from Israel if the country expanded operations into Rafah, where Palestinian refugees have fled due to the war.
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Author: Marty Kaufmann
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