Israel says US shipments of arms and equipment during war exceed 50,000 tons
Biden administration’s material support for IDF continuing despite some calls to end military aid
Five hundred transport planes and 107 ships have delivered more than 50,000 tons of armaments and military equipment from the United States to Israel since the start of the war in Gaza last October, the Defense Ministry said on Monday.
The military equipment delivered to Israel since the beginning of the war includes “armored vehicles, munitions, ammunition, personal protection gear and medical equipment,” according to the ministry.
The deliveries are “crucial for sustaining the IDF’s operational capabilities during the ongoing war.”
The “large-scale logistical effort” has been carried out by the ministry’s Directorate of Production and Procurement, the ministry’s mission to the US, the IDF’s Planning Directorate, and the Israeli Air Force.
The US has continued to provide Israel with arms despite calls from some critics of Israel to stop supplying the country with arms amid the rising death toll reports coming out of Gaza.
US President Joe Biden has continued to support US aid for Israel and said in April, after signing a $17 billion aid package for Israel into law, that he would make sure that Israel has what it needs to defend itself against Iran and its proxies.
However, after he stepped down from the 2024 presidential race, many questioned whether the new Democratic candidate, US Vice President Kamala Harris, would follow the same policy.
Earlier this month, Harris’s campaign issued a statement echoing Biden’s commitment to making sure Israel has what it needs to stay secure.
During her speech accepting the Democratic Party’s nomination for president, Harris said, “I will always stand up for Israel’s right to defend itself, and I will always ensure Israel has the ability to defend itself.”
The Biden administration withheld shipments of some heavy bombs from Israel amid concern over the Israeli incursion into south Gaza’s Rafah in the spring, but part of that shipment has since been released.
The war broke out on October 7 when Hamas launched an unprecedented attack on Israel in which terrorists killed some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and took 251 hostages.
In response, Israel launched a ground invasion of the Gaza Strip with the proclaimed objectives of dismantling Hamas and bringing the hostages home.
The Hamas-run Gaza health ministry says more than 40,000 people in the Strip have been killed or are presumed dead in the fighting so far, though the toll cannot be verified and does not differentiate between civilians and fighters. Israel says it has killed some 17,000 combatants in battle and another 1,000 terrorists inside Israel on October 7.
Israel has said it seeks to minimize civilian fatalities and stresses that Hamas uses Gaza’s civilians as human shields, fighting from civilian areas including homes, hospitals, schools and mosques.
