Washington postpones meeting with Israel after Netanyahu video
The White House publicly announced on June 18th that it had postponed a meeting between US and Israeli officials following a video that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu uploaded in which he accused Washington of withholding military aid required to “finish the job in Gaza,” The New Arab and agencies reported.
The video reportedly enraged US President Joe Biden’s top advisers. “This decision makes it clear that there are consequences for pulling such stunts,” said one US official.
“The Americans are fuming,” said a senior Israeli official. “Bibi’s video [caused] a lot of damage.”
One American media outlet reported that some Israeli officials had already been on their way to Washington when the meeting was scrapped, though another US official clarified that the meeting was postponed rather than cancelled altogether.
The long-standing alliance between the US and Israel has come under strain due to the colossal death toll in Gaza — now over 37,000.
READ: Hezbollah releases surveillance footage of carnage in Gaza
On May 7th, the Biden administration paused a military aid shipment to Israel, serving as the country’s most significant political move yet in expressing its condemnation of Israel’s war on Gaza. Though just eight days later, the administration moved forward with the aid plan once again, guaranteeing over $1 billion in offensive assistance to Israel.
In a short video released on June 18th, Netanyahu spoke directly to the camera in English, lobbing sharp criticisms at Biden over “bottlenecks” in arms transfers. “It’s inconceivable that in the past few months, the administration has been withholding weapons and ammunition to Israel,” he said. “Give us the tools and we’ll finish the job a lot faster.”
While Netanyahu did not specify which weapons the US had withheld, two top Democrats in Congress recently approved Washington’s $15 billion sale of F-15s to Israel following a delay. Comparatively, another sought answers on Israel’s use of US weapons in Gaza.
The New Arab and agencies
