The Biden administration approved the transfer of thousands more bombs to Israel on the same day Israeli airstrikes in Gaza killed seven aid workers for the charity group World Central Kitchen, three U.S. officials told The Washington Post this week after the incident elicited global condemnation.
A State Department spokesperson confirmed the approval and said[b] it occurred sometime “prior” to when the Israeli aircraft struck the aid convoy.[/b]
When asked why the Biden administration did not at least pause the process after the incident or until the Israelis’ investigation was completed, the spokesperson did not provide comment.
The State Department approved the transfer of more than 1,000 MK82 500-pound bombs, more than 1,000 small-diameter bombs, and fuses for MK80 bombs, all from authorizations granted by Congress several years before the latest hostilities between Israel and Hamas began, said the U.S. officials, who like others spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive arms deals.
The Biden administration’s unyielding support for Israel’s military has been combined with public statements of concern about Israel’s conduct in the war. After a phone call between Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday, Secretary of State Antony Blinken suggested there would be consequences if Israel did not heed U.S. demands on protecting civilians and admitting more humanitarian aid.
“If we don’t see the changes we need to see, there will be changes in our policy,” Blinken said.
He declined to say if that would affect U.S. arms transfers specifically.
The White House declined to comment for this article.
