Adam Kredo of the Washington Free Beacon reports on a threat the Biden administration delivered to America’s only reliable ally in the Middle East.
The Biden-Harris administration confirmed on Tuesday that it threatened to cut off aid to Israel’s military, including arms shipments, if the Jewish state does not boost the delivery of humanitarian aid into the battle-torn Gaza Strip. The threats came in a Sunday letter that gives Israel one month to do so, meaning any action would not come until after the presidential election.
The missive, which Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin sent to Israeli defense minister Yoav Gallant, leaked early Tuesday and made the rounds on social media before the State Department confirmed its accuracy and chastised Israel for allegedly withholding humanitarian aid from Gaza.
“This was a letter we considered a private diplomatic communication, and we did not intend to make it public from our side, but now that it is public, I’m happy to confirm it,” State Department spokesman Matthew Miller told reporters on Tuesday afternoon. “We hope that Israel makes the changes that the secretary outlined.”
The revelation marks another public rift between the United States and its crucial ally amid a brutal yearlong war and a contested election season that has seen Democratic voters galvanize behind efforts to cut off Israel’s access to U.S. arms. The threats are unlikely to satisfy those voters, who have long pushed the Biden-Harris administration to impose an immediate arms embargo on the Jewish state. They are also certain to anger pro-Israel Americans.
When asked if the letter was part of a ploy by the Biden-Harris administration to publicly embarrass Israel and shore up support with the Democratic Party’s anti-Israel flank, Miller said the upcoming presidential election “was not a factor at all.”
