US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has confirmed reports that the United States paused a weapons shipment to Israel, as President Joe Biden’s administration faces growing pressure to condition aid to the top US ally amid the war in Gaza.
Testifying before a US congressional subcommittee on Wednesday, Austin said the Biden administration had paused “one shipment of high payload munitions” amid concerns about the Israeli military’s push to invade the southern Gaza city of Rafah.
“We’ve been very clear … from the very beginning that Israel shouldn’t launch a major attack into Rafah without accounting for and protecting the civilians that are in that battlespace,” Austin told US lawmakers.
“We’ve not made a final determination on how to proceed with that shipment [of weapons],” the Pentagon chief added, noting that the transfer is separate from a supplemental aid package for Israel that was passed in late April.
“My final comment is that we are absolutely committed to continuing to support Israel in its right to defend itself.”
President Biden himself spoke to the prospect of withholding weapons from Israel in an interview that aired on CNN later on Wednesday, denouncing the prospect of a major offensive in Rafah.
“It’s just wrong,” he told CNN. “We’re not going to supply the weapons and artillery shells.”
He clarified that the US would not be “walking away from Israel’s security”, but would rather be stepping away from supporting “Israel’s ability to wage war in those areas”. He cited the use of US weapons against civilians as a reason for the pause. – Al Jazeera.
