Joe Biden calls for $1.5bn in new arms for Israel

The decision to proceed with the transfers underscores the US administration’s reluctance to deepen its rift with Benjamin Netanyahu over the Rafah operation.

President Joe Biden said last week he would continue to provide weapons that Israel could use for self-defence, as opposed to attacking what the US termed population centres – a policy echoed by his top advisers.

The Biden administration has notified the US congress that it was moving forward with more than $US1 billion ($1.5bn) in new weapons deals for Israel, according to government and congressional officials on Tuesday.

This would be a massive new arms package less than a week after the White House paused a shipment of bombs over a planned Israeli assault on Rafah.

The latest weapons package includes the potential transfer of $US700m in tank ammunition, $US500m in tactical vehicles and $US60m in mortar rounds, the officials said. There are still additional steps before the weapons would be approved and delivered.

The decision to proceed with the approval process underscored the Biden administration’s reluctance to deepen its rift with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over the Rafah operation by restricting longer-term weapons deals with its closest Middle East ally.

US officials have stressed their opposition to a full-scale Israeli attack in the city, saying it could result in widespread civilian casualties and deepen Gaza’s humanitarian crisis without ending the threat Israel faces from Hamas.

But they have registered their opposition so far only by withholding a single shipment of 2000-pound (900kg) bombs.

Boys watch smoke billowing during Israeli strikes east of Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip this week. Picture: AFP

President Joe Biden said last week he would consider withholding additional weapons if Israel assaulted what he called population centres in Rafah. He added that he would continue to provide weapons that the country could use for self-defence – a policy echoed by his top advisers.

“We are continuing to send military assistance,” national security adviser Jake Sullivan told reporters on Monday. “We have paused a shipment of 2000-pound bombs because we don’t believe they should be dropped in densely populated cities.”

Israel has carried out air strikes and sent forces into Rafah over the past week in what it calls a targeted operation to pressure Hamas into a deal that releases hostages in return for a temporary ceasefire. Many of the more than one million Palestinians who were sheltering in the city have relocated in recent days.

The State Department and White House National Security Council cited Mr Sullivan’s comments in response to questions about the new package. The Pentagon declined to comment.

Seth Blinder, an expert on US weapons sales with the Middle East Democracy Centre, a policy institute in Washington, said the White House decision to proceed with a large new weapons package for Israel only days after halting a pending shipment undermined its own attempt to pressure Mr Netanyahu to rethink the conduct of the war.

“This is just another example of them muddying their message and undermining any real strength behind the hold,” Mr Binder said.

Even though it could take years for the weapons in the latest package to be delivered, Mr Binder said Israel could interpret the administration proceeding with these deals as a sign that munitions expended in the war in Gaza would be restocked, despite the sharp disagreement over Rafah.

The US has sent Israel tens of thousands of bombs, tank and artillery ammunition, precision weapons and air-defence equipment since the war began, often drawing on $US23bn worth of weapons transfers that have been previously approved by congress.

The tank rounds, vehicles and mortars in the package sent to congress on Tuesday are a rare instance of new weapons deals with Israel since last October. The new arms could replenish Israel’s stockpiles that have been depleted during more than half a year of war in Gaza.

The deals have been under consideration since earlier this spring. The decision to notify congress on Tuesday started a review period during which lawmakers have the option of seeking to block the transfers. The Wall Street Journal earlier reported that the administration was considering the weapons package in April.

The State Department is required to notify congress when the US plans to sell weapons to other countries when the deal rises above specific dollar thresholds. The State Department typically provides information to the House of Representatives and Senate foreign affairs committees ahead of those potential arms sales, followed by a formal congressional notification.

US weapons transfers to Israel are usually paid for out of foreign aid funds provided by Congress. An aid package approved last month includes about $US26bn in funding for Israel, including $US5.2bn in spending on air defences, $US1bn for the production of artillery, and billions of dollars for other weapons systems and US military operations undertaken in the region in response to recent attacks. It also includes about $US9bn for humanitarian assistance, some of which would help Gaza residents.

The Hamas-led assault on southern Israel on October 7 left about 1200 people dead – most of them civilians – according to Israeli authorities. Hamas also took 240 hostages. More than 35,000 people have been killed in Gaza since the start of the war, most of them civilians, Palestinian officials say, not specifying how many were combatants.

The Wall Street Journal