Senior Israeli official says Jerusalem is seething over Biden administration’s decision to halt sale of smart bombs to the IDF in the middle of Israel’s war with Hamas.
By World Israel News Staff
The Biden administration’s decision to freeze planned arms shipments to the IDF in the midst of Israel’s ongoing war against the Hamas terror organization has ratcheted up tensions between Washington and Jerusalem, according to an Israeli official.
In a report published Wednesday, NBC News cited an Israeli official who spoke on condition of anonymity claiming that the Netanyahu government is deeply frustrated with the White House’s halt on arms shipments to the Jewish state.
The report came just hours after an Israeli army spokesperson tried to downplay the rift between the White House and Israel, saying the two sides would settle any disagreements “behind closed doors.”
Last week, the Biden administration instructed Boeing not to ship 3,500 bombs slated for delivery to the Israeli military, including the Joint Direct Attack Munitions (JDAM) bombs, along with equipment to convert the weapons to precision-guided bombs, and Small Diameter Bombs.
The administration launched a formal review of U.S. weapons sales to Israel in April, to ensure American-made arms are not used in any way that could be construed as human rights violations.
On Wednesday, Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin confirmed that the Biden administration has frozen planned weapons sales, telling the Senate that the U.S. commitment to Israel’s security nevertheless remains “ironclad.”
Austin added that the weapons transfers were suspended over Israel’s plans to carry out a comprehensive ground operation in Rafah, the final Hamas stronghold in the Gaza Strip.
“We’ve been very clear,” Austin told senators Wednesday, “from the very beginning that Israel shouldn’t launch a major attack into Rafah without accounting for and protecting the civilians that are in that battlespace.”