Biden advances $680 million arms package for Israel

President Joe Biden has provisionally approved a $680 million weapons sale to Israel, which includes precision weaponry that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu cited as a key factor in his decision to back a US-brokered ceasefire with Hezbollah.

The planned sale involves thousands of Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM) kits and hundreds of small-diameter bombs.

According to sources familiar with the matter, US officials recently briefed Congress on the deal, a step typically taken before a formal public announcement, giving lawmakers an opportunity to object, Caliber.Az reports via foreign media.

This arms package comes as Israel and Hezbollah implement a fragile ceasefire aimed at halting over a year of conflict on the Israel-Lebanon border. Netanyahu stated on Tuesday that replenishing weapon supplies was one of three main reasons for agreeing to the ceasefire. He noted that the pause in hostilities would "give our forces a breather and replenish stocks," and emphasized that delays in weapons deliveries would soon be resolved.

“It is no secret that there have been big delays in weapons and munitions deliveries,” Netanyahu said. “These delays will be resolved soon. We will receive supplies of advanced weaponry that will keep our soldiers safe and give us more strike force to complete our mission.”

However, US officials have denied any explicit connection between the ceasefire agreement and the arms sale. While the ceasefire includes a side letter from the US outlining support for certain Israeli military actions, sources familiar with the agreement clarified that it does not guarantee specific weapons deliveries. Additionally, the US has denied allegations of intentional delays in arms shipments, aside from earlier pauses on 2,000-pound bombs, which were halted by Biden over concerns about their use in densely populated areas of Gaza.

The $680 million sale of JDAMs and small-diameter bombs is part of broader US military aid to Israel, which includes approximately $20 billion in weapons sales that Senate Democrats, led by Bernie Sanders, unsuccessfully attempted to block last week over concerns about civilian casualties in Gaza. This latest package supplements the $26 billion in wartime aid Congress approved for Israel in April, which is in addition to the annual $3.8 billion in security assistance the US provides to the country.

In October, the Biden administration had warned it might withhold military aid unless Israel took steps to improve humanitarian conditions in Gaza, setting a 30-day deadline. Despite record lows in aid deliveries to Gaza, the State Department withdrew the threat, stating it was satisfied with Israel's efforts, a decision that drew sharp criticism from rights groups. These organizations argued that Israel failed to meet the US's specific conditions and accused the country of exacerbating the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, describing the situation as one where Palestinians were being “starved.”

President-elect Donald Trump, expected to take office in January, is anticipated to exert less pressure on Israel’s military operations in Gaza, though he has expressed interest in ending Israel’s ongoing conflict with Hamas

By Tamilla Hasanova