Biden administration officials are holding up shipments of precision bombs to Israel to send a message about the Jewish state’s ongoing war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
While the White House has not formally scrapped the planned sale of the Boeing-made munitions, it has yet to formally approve the transaction, Politico reported Tuesday.
US officials tiptoed around the report, with a series of spokespeople refusing to deny it.
“Our commitment to Israel’s security remains ironclad. We don’t, as a matter of course, talk about individual shipments one way or the other,” National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters.
“But again, nothing’s changed about our commitment to Israel’s security. I understand the curiosity out there. I’ve seen some of the press reporting. But that’s that’s as far as I’m going to be able to go.”
“I’ve seen those reports. I don’t have a comment,” added Pentagon spokesperson Sabrina Singh. “What I can reiterate is that our commitment to Israel’s security remains ironclad.”
“Our support for Israel’s right to defend itself, our support for Israel’s right to ensure that Oct. 7 never happens again, remains strong. And with respect to any individual shipments, I’m just not going to speak to that from here,” echoed State Department spokesman Matthew Miller.
Miller was grilled by reporters about whether he was being “inconsistent” given that the department has discussed individual arms shipments in the past.
“It always depends on the situation,” he said. “There are different situations all around the world, and of course, we look at them differently.”
The stalled tranche of aid includes Joint Direct Attack Munitions, along with kits converting them to precision-guided “smart” bombs, and Small Diameter Bombs — used to hit stationary targets like buildings.
Tuesday’s report by Politico, which cited half a dozen sources, followed an Axios report that an ammunition shipment meant for Israel had been halted last week
The Wall Street Journal reported Monday evening that the package had been held up since at least January and included up to 6,500 JDAMs.
The Biden administration has repeatedly warned Israel against mounting a ground invasion of the southern Gazan city of Rafah, where around 1.5 million Palestinians are believed to have fled, without having a plan to avoid civilian casualties.
On Monday, Israel began bombarding targets in Rafah right around the time Hamas announced it had agreed to a cease-fire deal, though Israeli officials said the proposal was unacceptable to its side.
Biden spoke with Netanyahu on Monday and “reiterated” his position that “we don’t want to see operations in Rafah that put at risk those million and a half people that are there,” Kirby said at the time.
Meanwhile, top Republicans in Congress lashed out at the president over the reported delay.
“Just when we thought it was only university presidents who are caving into the absurd demands of the pro-Hamas students, the president himself has now reportedly halted ammunition shipments to Israel,” House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) groused to reporters.
“If this is true, and it looks to be true, President Biden is clearly trying to placate the pro-Hamas element of his party,” he added. “This is not the will of Congress.”
Last month, Congress passed a $26.3 billion package for both military aid to Israel and humanitarian assistance for the Palestinians.
Biden has come under intense pressure from his left flank over the Israel-Hamas war. Hundreds of thousands of Democratic primary voters have marked themselves as some variation of “uncommitted” in protest of his handling of the conflict..
On Tuesday, Biden pleaded with the public to push back on the rising scourge of antisemitism and reaffirmed US support for the Jewish state.
“Antisemitism, antisemitic posters, slogans calling for the annihilation of Israel, the world’s only Jewish state. Too many people denying, downplaying, rationalizing, ignoring the horrors of the Holocaust and Oct. 7,” the president said. “It is absolutely despicable, and it must stop.”
“To the Jewish community, I want you to know: I see your fear, your hurt, and your pain. Let me reassure you as your president, you’re not alone. You belong. You always have, and you always will.”
