US threatens to cut off arms supply to Israel: Strongest known warning sent to Netanyahu since war began calls for greater humanitarian aid in Gaza

Published October 16, 2024
  • The White House demanded Israel take several concrete actions within 30 days

The US has issued a stark ultimatum to Israel, warning it must relax restrictions on the flow of aid into and around Gaza lest it face being cut off from arms imports.

The threat, delivered in a letter penned by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin, constitutes Washington’s strongest warning to Israel over the worsening humanitarian situation in the Palestine enclave.

Washington’s top diplomat cited the strict controls Israel is imposing, including ‘burdensome and excessive’ restrictions on import materials and the denial of most humanitarian movements between northern and southern Gaza.

Blinken and Austin demanded concrete action be taken within 30 days, including enabling a minimum of 350 trucks to enter Gaza per day, instituting pauses in fighting to allow aid delivery and rescinding evacuation orders to Palestinian civilians when there is no operational need.

‘Failure to demonstrate a sustained commitment to implementing and maintaining these measures may have implications for US policy… and relevant US law,’ the letter concluded, citing a section of the Foreign Assistance Act, which prohibits military aid to countries that impede the delivery of humanitarian assistance.

It comes at a time when the threat of escalation in the Middle East appears at an all-time high.

Israeli President Benjamin Netanyahu yesterday roundly rejected the notion of a ceasefire with Hezbollah in Lebanon as the IDF ramped up bombing raids on Beirut.

Meanwhile, Iran‘s Foreign Minister this morning warned UN chief Antonio Guterres that Tehran is ready to deliver a ‘decisive and regretful’ response if Israel attacks the Islamic republic in retaliation for a barrage of missiles launched earlier this month.

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SOURCE: www.dailymail.co.uk

RELATED: U.S. warns Israel it may withhold arms unless Gaza aid starts flowing

The Biden administration set a 30-day deadline for Israel to improve Palestinians’ access to food, medicine and other necessities.

Palestinians line up for food in Rafah, southern Gaza, in March. (Loay Ayyoub for The Washington Post)
Published October 16, 2024

The Biden administration intensified pressure on Israel this week to improve dire conditions for civilians in the Gaza Strip, as top officials warned they would resort to punitive measures, potentially including a suspension of military aid, if humanitarian aid flows are not increased within a month.

In an Oct. 13 letter to senior Israeli officials, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Secretary of State Antony Blinken demanded urgent steps to ensure noncombatants have access to food and other necessities, blaming actions by the Israeli government and lawlessness in Gaza for a recent deterioration of conditions there.

Absent a change, they cautioned, the administration would be obliged to take steps laid out in laws and policies linking the facilitation of humanitarian aid during wartime and the compliance with laws of war, including the protection of civilians, to the provision of U.S. arms and military assistance. The letter, which became public Tuesday, gives the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu one month to comply, which would delay any action until after the U.S. presidential election.

While the letter from Austin and Blinken, addressed to Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and Minister for Strategic Affairs Ron Dermer, does not explicitly reference a possible suspension of arms transfers, it represents an implicit warning that the United States could curtail or halt those shipments if Israel does not ensure that desperate Gazans can access food, medicine and other necessities.

 

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SOURCE: www.washingtonpost.com

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