Trump lifts Biden's hold on 2,000-pound bombs to Israel
Trump and Netanyahu at the White House in 2020. Photo: Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images
The Trump White House instructed the Pentagon to release the hold imposed by the Biden administration on the supply of 2,000-pound bombs to Israel, three Israeli officials told Axios.
Why it matters: President Biden's decision to halt the delivery of one shipment of 2,000-pound bombs last May triggered one of the biggest crises the U.S-Israel relationship has faced during the 15-month war in Gaza.
State of play: The Israeli government was notified by the Pentagon about the release on Friday, an Israeli official said.
- The officials said that 1,800 MK-84 bombs, which were held in storage in the U.S., will be put on a ship and delivered to Israel in the coming days.
- "A lot of things that were ordered and paid for by Israel, but have not been sent by Biden, are now on their way!" President Trump wrote on Truth Social Saturday.
Zoom in: The hold — which Biden used to protest Israel's invasion of Rafah — became a political symbol much more than a military operational issue, and was used by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to mobilize Republicans against Biden.
- The Biden administration was concerned that Israel's use of the 2,000-pound bombs in densely populated areas of Gaza would cause significant civilian casualties.
- Netanyahu and his loyalists in Israel and the U.S. used Biden's decision to falsely claim there was a U.S. "arms embargo" on Israel.
- Biden's decision also generated significant criticism from the Jewish community in the U.S., which is mostly Democratic leaning.
- On the other hand, the hold did little to diminish progressives' criticism of Biden over his support for Israel.
What they're saying: The outgoing Israeli ambassador to the U.S. Mike Herzog told Axios a week ago that Trump was expected to release the bombs.
- "We believe that Trump is going to release, at the beginning of his term, the munitions that haven't been released until now by the Biden administration," Herzog said in an interview last Friday.