Netanyahu Urges US to End ‘Inconceivable’ Delay in Weapons Shipments to Israel, Arm Them to Quickly ‘Finish The Job’

Last updated on August 7th, 2024 at 04:28 pm

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu urged the Biden administration to end an “inconceivable” delay in weapons shipments for his country and send the “tools” Israel is seeking to quickly conclude its ongoing armed conflicts.

In a video statement he shared on Tuesday, June 18, Netanyahu claimed he and U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke about military aid for Israel during Blinken’s most recent visit to the region.

“I said I deeply appreciate the support the U.S. has given Israel from the beginning of the war. But I also said something else. I said it’s inconceivable that in the past few months, the administration has been withholding weapons and ammunitions to Israel,” Netanyahu said.

Give us the tools and we’ll finish the job. pic.twitter.com/eQHpyd9q0X

— Benjamin Netanyahu – בנימין נתניהו (@netanyahu) June 18, 2024

The Israeli prime minister then claimed Blinken gave assurances that the Biden administration was working to remove “bottlenecks” to continued U.S. military aid.

“I certainly hope that’s the case. It should be the case,” Netanyahu continued. “During World War Two, Churchill told the United States, ‘Give us the tools, we’ll do the job.’ And I say, ‘Give us the tools and we’ll finish the job a lot faster.'”

Netanyahu’s remarks come more than eight months on in Israel’s military campaign in the Gaza Strip, and as Israeli forces are contending with an escalating conflict with Hezbollah along their northern border with Lebanon.

The Biden administration had already announced last month that it had paused a shipment of 2,000-pound bombs for Israel, amid concerns they pose an undue risk to civilians in the Gaza Strip. President Joe Biden told CNN, in a May 8 interview, that civilians “have been killed in Gaza as a consequence of” Israel’s use of some of these munitions and said he’d pause other weapons shipments if he feels they pose a serious risk to civilians.

As Blinken faced questions about Netanyahu’s video statement on Tuesday, he insisted last month’s decision to halt the single shipment of bombs marked the only instance of the Biden administration holding up aid for Israel.

“We, as you know, are continuing to review one shipment that President Biden has talked about, with regard to 2000-pound bombs, because of our concerns about their use in a densely-populated area like Rafah. That remains under review,” Blinken told reporters during a press conference alongside NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg. “But everything else is moving as it normally would move.”

White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre also expressed confusion at Netanyahu’s new remarks during the Tuesday White House press briefing, stating, “We genuinely do not know what he’s talking about.” The White House press secretary acknowledged last month’s pause on “one particular shipment of munitions” but said there have been no other pauses on U.S. aid flowing to Israel.