The Biden administration is close to approving a massive $18 billion arms deal for Israel that includes 50 F-15 fighter jets, CNN reported on Monday.
The news is the latest sign that the administration still strongly supports Israel’s slaughter of Palestinians in Gaza despite US officials claiming to be concerned with the massive civilian death toll. Last week, President Biden approved more bomb shipments to Israel and an F-35 deal worth $2.5 billion.
The CNN report said the administration informally notified the House Foreign Affairs and Senate Foreign Relations committees about the potential F-15 deal in January. The top Republicans on both committees, Sen. James Risch (R-ID) and Rep. Michael McCaul (R-TX), have already given their approval on the deal.
If the top Democrats on the committees, Sen. Ben Cardin (D-MD) and Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-NY), don’t raise any objections to the F-15 transfer, the administration can formally notify Congress about the deal.
The notification will begin a 30-day period when lawmakers could block it through legislation. While a growing number of Democrats have been calling for the US to cut off military aid to Israel, the majority of Congress still backs Israel’s brutal campaign in Gaza.
Also on Monday, State Department spokesman Matt Miller was grilled about the hypocritical position of the US as it expresses concerns about the civilian death toll in Gaza and the starvation blockade while continuing to arm Israel, including by sending 2,000 pounds of bombs. Miller was specifically asked if he was concerned that the position would damage US credibility.
“I do not agree with that at all. We have been very clear that we want to see Israel do everything it can to minimize civilian casualties. We have made clear that they need to operate at all times in full compliance with international humanitarian law,” he said. “At the same time, we are committed to Israel’s right to self-defense, and this is a long-term commitment the United States has made.”
The State Department claims Israel is following international law in Gaza despite the mass civilian casualties and video evidence of Israel killing unarmed Palestinians.
Gaza’s Health Ministry said Monday that the death toll in Gaza has reached 32,845 Palestinians, which is considered a low estimate since it doesn’t take into account the thousands missing and presumed dead under the rubble. UNICEF said last month that over 13,000 Palestinian children have been killed by Israel, a number that also doesn’t take into account the bodies of children under the rubble.