Joe Biden’s decision to block the shipment thousands of heavy-duty bombs bound for Israel over fears they would be used to attack the southern Gaza city of Rafah is “incredibly disturbing”, an ex-Israeli aide has claimed.
British-Israeli politician Eylon Levy, who previously served as a government spokesperson, warned Israel needs the support of its Western allies at what he said was a critical time, in order to see the remaining 128 hostages in Hamas captivity freed.
His comments came after it was revealed on Tuesday that the shipment – which was supposed to consist of 1,800 2,000-pound (900-kilogram) bombs and 1,700 500-pound (225-kilogram) bombs – would not be greenlit, a senior US administration official revealed anonymously to the Associated Press.
Discussing the move on The Sun’s politics show Never Mind The Ballots, Levy said it was “an incredibly disturbing step.”
“What Israel needs right now is its Western allies to keep up pressure on Hamas to release the hostages,” he continued.
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Levy rejected the characterisation, saying: “There was a framework on the table that would see Israel receive 33 live hostages back in exchange for a pause in the fighting.
“What Hamas did the other day, was put a counter offer, in which it told Israel, ‘We’re not giving you back live hostages. We’re going to give you 33 hostages, alive or dead.’
“And as much as Israel is committed to getting all of those hostages back for a dignified burial, so their families can have that closure, Israel is not going to be bought off at this stage with the corpses of the hostages Hamas has been starving and executing and torturing…”
The Israeli government has been approached for comment.
The US has historically provided enormous amounts of military aid to Israel. That has only accelerated in the aftermath of Hamas’ October 7 attack that killed some 1,200 in Israel and led to about 250 being taken captive by militants.
Biden’s comments and his decision to pause a shipment of heavy bombs to Israel are the most striking manifestations of the growing daylight between his administration and Netanyahu’s government.
Biden said Wednesday that Israel’s actions around Rafah had “not yet” crossed his red lines, but has repeated that Israel needs to do far more to protect the lives of civilians in Gaza.
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