Posted on 11/02/24
| News Source: Arutz-7
The Biden administration is putting maximum pressure on Israel, threatening to suspend military aid if Israel does not fully implement its demands before November 13, Axios reported.
Biden has thus far avoided suspending military aid, but the move is "gaining more support inside the State Department," the site reported, quoting a US official.
The threat follows an October 13 letter sent by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin to their Israeli counterparts, warning that if the humanitarian situation in Gaza did not significantly improve within 30 days, it would affect the weapons the US supplies to Israel.
Over half of all humanitarian aid to enter Gaza is taken over by the Hamas terror group, and used to fund its continued terror operations. According to officials, the increased humanitarian aid taken over to Hamas is significantly extending the war in Gaza.
In a Thursday press conference with Austin, Blinken said, "Both of us and our teams are tracking very carefully Israel's responsibilities to meet the letter of the law ... with regard to the provision of humanitarian assistance." They emphasized that although Israel has made progress, more needs to be done.
Meanwhile, Israeli and US officials said that Israel's Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer has been tasked with drafting the response to the letter from Blinken and Austin, but that the letter is expected to be finalized and sent only after the US elections next week. Its contents are likely to be influenced by the results of the elections.
On Friday, the State Department stated: "Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken spoke today with the Israeli Minister of Strategic Affairs Ron Dermer. The Secretary and Minister discussed necessary steps for regional de-escalation. The Secretary emphasized the importance of ending the war in Gaza and bringing all of the hostages home, as well as charting a path forward in the post-conflict period that provides governance, security, and reconstruction. He discussed the dire status of humanitarian conditions in Gaza, reviewed steps that have been taken to improve the situation, and urged further actions to surge aid to civilians. The Secretary and Minister discussed ongoing efforts to reach a diplomatic resolution in Lebanon that allows both Lebanese and Israeli civilians to return safely to their homes. The Secretary reaffirmed the United States’ ironclad commitment to Israel’s security against threats from Iran and Iran-backed proxy groups."
Among the US demands is that 350 aid trucks enter Gaza each day by November 13.
Already in September, Channel 12 News - a left-wing media outlet - reported that Hamas has profited by at least a half billion dollars from humanitarian aid entering Gaza. The terror group takes control over the aid, hides it in warehouses, and later sells it to the Gazan population, earning a lot of money from it, which is then invested in recruiting new terrorists and paying salaries to existing terrorists.
The channel's Almog Boker noted that approximately 200 aid trucks already enter Gaza each day, something which has "actually become the main oxygen pipeline for the terrorist organization."