(Al Jazeera Media Network) Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has criticized the administration of US President Joe Biden for “withholding weapons” to Israel in recent months as it presses its war on Gaza.
Netanyahu said in a video statement on Tuesday that it was “inconceivable” that the United States had been “withholding weapons and ammunitions to Israel” in recent months.
“Secretary [of State Antony] Blinken assured me that the administration is working day and night to remove these bottlenecks. I certainly hope that’s the case. It should be the case,” Netanyahu said, referring to talks the top US diplomat held in the country last week.
Washington provides $3.8 billion in military assistance to Israel annually, and in April, Biden signed a law granting the US ally $17 billion in additional aid amid Israel’s war on Gaza.
Biden and his top aides often stress their commitment to Israel, but Washington confirmed last month holding up a single shipment of 900-kg bombs to the Israeli military over concerns about civilian casualties in Israel’s assault on Rafah in southern Gaza.
Since then, the Biden administration has authorized further weapons sales to Israel, according to US media accounts, including a package worth $1 billion last month.
The Washington Post reported on Monday that the Biden administration pressured top Democratic lawmakers to sign off on the $18-billion sale of 50 F-15 fighter jets to Israel.
Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Blinken stressed that the US is committed to Israeli security and continues to move arms transfers to Israel through its system on a “regular basis”. But he said the hold on the heavy bombs remains in place.
‘“We, as you know, are continuing to review one shipment that President Biden has talked about with regard to 2000-pound bombs because of our concerns about their use in a densely populated area like Rafah,” Blinken said. “That remains under review. But everything else is moving as it normally would move.”
The White House also denied Netanyahu’s claim that the US has been withholding weapons to Israel for months, stressing that the US has only paused one shipment of bombs.
“We genuinely do not know what he’s talking about. There was one particular shipment of munitions that was paused,” White House spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters. “We continue to have these constructive discussions with Israelis for the release of that particular shipment… There are no other pauses – none.”
