Biden administration again bypasses Congress on weapons sale to Israel US approval of a $147.5 million sale of artillery tank ammunition to Israel. Hamas condemns US

A picture taken from a position in southern Israel along the border with the Gaza Strip shows a military vehicle driving inside Gaza on December 29, 2023, amid continuing battles between Israel and Hamas. (AFP)

Hamas condemns US ‘emergency’ sale of ammunition to Israel

Hamas said the sale was “clear evidence of the American administration’s full sponsorship of this criminal war.”

The Gaza Strip’s Hamas rulers on Saturday condemned the US approval of a $147.5 million sale of high-explosive artillery munitions and related equipment to Israel.

For the second time this month the Biden administration is bypassing Congress to approve an emergency weapons sale to Israel as Israel continues to prosecute its war against Hamas in Gaza under increasing international criticism.

The State Department said Friday that Secretary of State Antony Blinken had told Congress that he had made a second emergency determination covering a $147.5 million sale for equipment, including fuses, charges and primers, that is needed to make the 155 mm shells that Israel has already purchased function.

US President Joe Biden announces the release of 1 million barrels of oil per day for the next six months from the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve, as part of administration efforts to lower gasoline prices, during remarks in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building’s South Court Auditorium at the White House in Washington, US, March 31, 2022. (File photo: Reuters)

“Given the urgency of Israel’s defensive needs, the secretary notified Congress that he had exercised his delegated authority to determine an emergency existed necessitating the immediate approval of the transfer,” the department said.

“The United States is committed to the security of Israel, and it is vital to US national interests to ensure Israel is able to defend itself against the threats it faces,” it said.

The emergency determination means the purchase will bypass the congressional review requirement for foreign military sales. Such determinations are rare, but not unprecedented, when administrations see an urgent need for weapons to be delivered without waiting for lawmakers’ approval.

Blinken made a similar decision on December 9, to approve the sale to Israel of nearly 14,000 rounds of tank ammunition worth more than $106 million.

Both moves have come as President Joe Biden’s request for a nearly $106 billion aid package for Ukraine, Israel and other national security needs remains stalled in Congress, caught up in a debate over US immigration policy and border security.

Some Democratic lawmakers have spoken of making the proposed $14.3 billion in American assistance to its Mideast ally contingent on concrete steps by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government to reduce civilian casualties in Gaza during the war with Hamas.

The State Department sought to counter potential criticism of the sale on human rights grounds by saying it was in constant touch with Israel to emphasize the importance of minimizing civilian casualties, which have soared since Israel began its response to the Hamas attacks in Israel on October 7.

“We continue to strongly emphasize to the government of Israel that they must not only comply with international humanitarian law, but also take every feasible step to prevent harm to civilians,” it said.

“Hamas hides behind civilians and has embedded itself among the civilian population, but that does not lessen Israel’s responsibility and strategic imperative to distinguish between civilians and Hamas terrorists as it conducts its military operations,” the department said. “This type of campaign can only be won by protecting civilians.”

Bypassing Congress with emergency determinations for arms sales is an unusual step that has in the past met resistance from lawmakers, who normally have a period of time to weigh in on proposed weapons transfers and, in some cases, block them.

In May 2019, then-Secretary of State Mike Pompeo made an emergency determination for an $8.1 billion sale of weapons to Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Jordan after it became clear that the Trump administration would have trouble overcoming lawmakers’ concerns about the war in Yemen.

Pompeo came under heavy criticism for the move, which some believed may have violated the law because many of the weapons involved had yet to be built and could not be delivered urgently. But he was cleared of any wrongdoing after an internal investigation.

At least four administrations have used the authority since 1979.

GAZA.  

The United States announced the sale of the 155 mm artillery ammunition on Friday under an emergency provision that waives the normal requirement for a congressional review.

Hamas said the sale was “clear evidence of the American administration’s full sponsorship of this criminal war.”

President Joe Biden’s administration “conspicuously aligns itself with and actively supports all atrocities perpetrated” by Israel, the group said in a statement.

Those wartime atrocities, it added, have led to the “ruthless killing of children and civilians, forced displacement of residents, and the systematic destruction of civilian life” in Gaza.

Israel launched a fierce military campaign against Hamas in Gaza after the militants carried out an unprecedented attack on southern Israel on October 7.

The attack left about 1,140 people dead in Israel, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli figures.

Israel’s Gaza offensive since then has killed at least 21,672 people, mostly women and children, according to the health ministry in Gaza.

As civilian deaths mount in Gaza, the United States’ international image has taken a beating over its continued backing for Israel.

Earlier this month, the United States used the same emergency provision to approve the sale of nearly 14,000 rounds of 120 mm tank ammunition to Israel.

Israel requested that 155mm fuses, primers and charges be added to previous foreign military sale cases, increasing their estimated total cost from $96.51 million to $147.5 million and requiring a new notification, according to a statement from the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency.

The secretary of state has determined that “an emergency exists that requires the immediate sale to the government of Israel,” the statement said.