Anjali Sharma
GG News Bureau
WASHINGTON DC, 31st Dec. President Joe Biden on Saturday approved sales of military equipment which “increased the total value of the sale to USD 147.5 million to Israel.
Biden administration has authorised the immediate transfer of USD 150 million in military equipment to Israel for its ongoing conflict with Hamas that sidesteps congressional approval according to media reports.
State Department spokesperson revealed on Friday that Secretary of State Antony Blinken apprised Congress of his emergency determination, allowed the prompt transfer of “155mm ancillary items, including fuzes, charges, and primers that make 155mm shells functional”.
He cited the urgency of Israel’s defensive requirements, the spokesperson explained, “The secretary notified Congress that he had exercised his delegated authority to determine an emergency existed necessitating the immediate approval of the transfer.”
State DEpartmennt spokesperson said the additional items were added to previous sales, which “increased the total value of the sale to USD 147.5 million,”
Biden administration expedited the sale of thousands of munitions to Israel, circumventing the standard 20-day review period typically granted to congressional committees. The emergency declaration sent to oversight committees outlined the delivery of over 13,000 tank shells to Israel without providing “further information, details, or assurances.”
“We continue to be clear with the government of Israel that they must comply with [international humanitarian law] and must take every feasible step to avoid harm to civilians,” emphasized a State Department spokesperson at the time.
Media rep[orted that the USD 106 million transaction was part of a larger request to sell a total of 45,000 tank shells to Israel.
The series of emergency approvals underscored the Biden administration’s response to Israel’s perceived immediate defensive needs after the ongoing conflict with Hamas in Gaza and the West Bank.
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