Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Tuesday that US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken assured him that President Joe Biden’s administration is working to cancel restrictions imposed on arms shipments to Israel.
Netanyahu added in a statement, “When Secretary Blinken was recently in Israel, we had a frank dialogue, and I said that I greatly appreciate the support that the United States has provided to Israel since the beginning of the war last October.”
But Netanyahu added, “But I also said that it is unreasonable for the American administration in the past few months to withhold weapons and ammunition from Israel, which is the closest ally of the United States, and is fighting for its life, fighting Iran and our other common enemies.”
Netanyahu said that Blinken assured him that the US administration “is working day and night to abolish such restrictions and remove obstacles,” adding, “I certainly hope that this will be the case. It should be the case… Give us the necessary tools and we will accomplish this task much faster.”
Netanyahu noted in his statement that during World War II, British Prime Minister at the time, Winston Churchill, told the United States, “Give us the tools and weapons necessary for war and we will do the job.”
Netanyahu continued, “And I say give us the tools and we will finish the job much faster.” But Netanyahu did not specify in his statement the type of weapons that Washington is withholding.
Biden warned Israel last month that the United States would stop supplying it with weapons if Israeli forces launched a major invasion of the city of Rafah, which is crowded with refugees in the southern Gaza Strip.
Days after Biden’s warning, the Israeli occupation forces launched an attack in Rafah, claiming that militants of the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) were hiding there, and reiterated that “eliminating Hamas and returning the hostages are Israel’s two main goals.”
The Washington Post reported on Monday that two senior Democratic members of the US Congress have agreed to support a major arms sale to Israel that includes 50 F-15 fighter jets worth more than $18 billion.
The newspaper explained that Representative Gregory Meeks and Senator Ben Cardin signed the deal under intense pressure from the Biden administration after they halted the sale process for several months.
Ongoing support
Since the beginning of the war on the Gaza Strip on October 7, the United States has sent large quantities of weapons and explosives to Israel, according to Israeli and American data.
Despite the military superiority in equipment and numbers, and even in the necessities of life and steadfastness, Israel continues to request more support to complete a war that has not succeeded in achieving the goal of eliminating the Palestinian resistance factions in the Gaza Strip, even after 9 months of brutal bombing.
In early June, Israel signed a deal to buy 25 American F-35 fighters worth $3 billion, according to a statement by the Israeli Ministry of Defense.
Last April, Biden signed an aid package for Israel amounting to $26.4 billion, including $14 billion in military aid.
As a result of the absolute American military support for Tel Aviv, the Palestinians hold Washington responsible for the ongoing Israeli war on the Gaza Strip for about 9 months, which has left more than 122,000 Palestinians dead or wounded.
Israel continues its aggression despite two UN Security Council resolutions to stop it immediately, and orders from the International Court of Justice to end the Rafah invasion and take measures to prevent acts of genocide and improve the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza.
