(StraightNews.org) – The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said the United States has refused some of Israel’s weapons requests. General Charles Q. Brown Jr. said President Biden was unwilling to provide all of Israel’s arms and ammunition.
Israeli defense minister Yoav Gallant traveled to Washington in late March to speak with Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin after reports emerged indicating that officials in the Jewish state were concerned that weapons shipments, which arrived quickly at the start of the conflict with Hamas, but had begun to slow, putting pressure on the Israeli Defense Force (IDF).
An unnamed official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told ABC News that he was unsure why the weapons deliveries had slowed, but did speculate that the White House is increasingly unhappy with Israel’s military campaigns in the Gaza Strip and intends to use military aid as a bargaining chip.
The official said, however, that Israel is aware of Washington’s frustrations and its concern that the Jewish state is not doing enough to protect Palestinian civilians. He added that his country “may lose the war” if America does not continue its munitions supply.
Biden administration officials deny any ill feeling, that supply has slowed, or that there has been any change in US policy toward Israel. The US provides around $3.8 billion in military assistance to Israel every year, but some analysts suggest the relationship between the two countries is at one of its lowest points.
For example, the White House has made it clear that it does not approve of Israel’s plans to launch a ground offensive in Rafah – a southern region of Gaza where the IDF believes Hamas militants are hiding out. President Biden has urged restraint, and in a speech in Congress, Senate Democrat leader Chuck Schumer called for Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to be replaced, describing him as an obstacle to peace. Mr. Netanyahu rejects an independent Palestinian state as a high risk to Israeli security.
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