The administration of outgoing US President Joe Biden has notified Congress of a planned $8 billion arms deal to Israel, according to US media reports, as the allied country continues its efforts. The devastating war on Gaza.
US media reported on Saturday, citing unnamed officials, that the State Department sent the notification to the Foreign Affairs Committees of the House of Representatives and the Senate on Friday.
Reports said the weapons would include 500-pound (226-kg) warheads, precision-guided munitions, artillery shells, missiles for aircraft and attack helicopters, bomb fuses, as well as air-to-air missiles to intercept projectiles.
Some production and delivery of munitions can be accomplished through the existing US stockpile, but the majority is expected to be delivered to Israel over a longer period, according to US outlets.
In August in Washington It agreed to a separate $20 billion packageWhich included aircraft, military vehicles, bombs and missiles.
In November, the Biden administration It approved another arms package worth $680 million To Israel, including small diameter bombs and precision guidance equipment.
After the US president last year briefly halted the supply of one shipment of 2,000-pound (907 kg) bombs that caused widespread devastation across Gaza, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu publicly criticized him.
Biden has consistently stressed his commitment to the US ally and its “self-defense” despite mounting criticism over the killing of Palestinian civilians in Gaza.
Alan Fisher, Al Jazeera’s correspondent from Washington, DC, said Congress is likely to approve the sale.
“We have already heard from Mike Johnson, the new Speaker of the House, who said that one of his priorities is to make sure that Israel, their friend and ally, feels the support of the United States. “To block it, you would need a two-thirds vote in both chambers, and that is simply not going to happen,” he said. “.
He added: “Weapons continue to be sent to Israel even though a number of Democratic lawmakers have expressed concerns that the United States will continue to provide weapons when the Israeli military is not doing enough to combat the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.”
In addition to warning about the humanitarian situation in Gaza, human rights groups have accused Israel of committing “acts of genocide” in its war, and the International Court of Justice has ordered Israel to take steps to prevent genocide in the Palestinian enclave. province.
A UN commission of inquiry has accused Israel of implementing a policy aimed at destroying the healthcare system in Gaza, where about 90 percent of the population has been displaced.
Israel escalates its attacks
Israel has intensified its attacks on Gaza in recent days, killing more than 100 people, according to Palestinian health authorities.
The Israeli army on Friday ordered the forced evacuation of staff and patients from the hospital Two hospitals in northern Gaza Under threat of attack, days after its forces stormed Kamal Adwan Hospital and detained its director.
At least 11 people from one family were martyred in the Shujaiya neighborhood in the northern Gaza Strip on Saturday.
“At around 2 a.m. (00:00 GMT) we woke up to the sound of a huge explosion,” said Ahmed Ayan, a neighbor of the Ghoula family, adding that 14 or 15 people were staying in the house.
He added: “Most of them were women and children, and all of them were civilians. There was no one who fired the rockets or from the resistance.”
Since Israel launched its war on Gaza in October 2023, at least 45,717 people have been killed and 108,856 others injured, according to Palestinian health authorities.
The escalation of Israeli attacks on Gaza in recent days comes at a time when the Israeli government and Hamas allowed representatives to travel to Qatar. Talks on a possible ceasefire and exchange of prisoners and prisoners.
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