Israel wants to invade Rafah, the last holdout of Hamas. But to deter the Jewish state from carrying out the operation, the Biden administration has reportedly put a hold on ammunition shipments to Israel. The move spells trouble for the future of U.S.-Israel relations and the administration’s relations with Congress.
On May 5, 2024, Axios’s Barak Ravid reported that the Biden administration “put a hold on a shipment of U.S.-made ammunition to Israel,” raising “serious concerns inside the Israeli government.” If the report is true, it is the first instance of the United States holding back arms shipments since Hamas perpetrated the Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist attack, provoking a war between Israel and the Gaza-based terrorist group.
The Biden administration has opposed any scaled Israeli ground or air campaign to take Rafah. Instead, the White House has suggested other possibilities, all of which would effectively leave Hamas in power. For its part, Israel has been clear on its war aim: the destruction of Hamas. So far, the Israel Defense Forces has made tremendous progress on this objective, significantly reducing Hamas’s military capabilities.
However, in an election year with tightening polls, the Biden administration seems desperate to appease elements of the Left’s progressive, anti-Israel base. Accordingly, they’ve pivoted away from their earlier rhetoric, which professed an “ironclad support” for Israel in its war against the Iranian proxies that seek the Jewish state’s destruction. Recent weeks have also seen far-left agitators protesting on college campuses throughout the U.S., with many expressing support for Hamas. The campus upheaval is part of a bid to apply political pressure on the administration and save Hamas by preventing Israel from carrying out its Rafah operation.
Regardless, it is shortsighted to hold or delay arms shipments to an ally that is fighting a war. By doing so, the White House is undercutting its own alliance system in the Middle East.
After all, Hamas is an Iranian proxy, and Iran itself is the chief regional ally of China. The Pentagon has declared Beijing to be the “sole pacing challenge” and preeminent adversary facing the U.S. By contrast, Israel is a key American ally. With Washington looking to focus on the Indo-Pacific, the U.S. should be reinforcing regional pillars like Israel, not undercutting them. Other U.S. allies will also take note that the Biden administration undermined a longtime ally while it was at war. Such actions do not inspire confidence and seem certain to damage American credibility further in the region and beyond.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
But the decision to thwart arms shipments to Israel will have repercussions at home, too. The administration cynically used aid to Israel as a bargaining chip to secure votes in a recent and highly contentious vote on foreign aid, the majority of which went to Ukraine. By turning around and blocking that aid, the administration is damaging its credibility with key members of Congress. The White House runs the risk of poisoning the well for future foreign policy objectives.
As the late Secretary of State Henry Kissinger once said in half-jest: “To be an enemy of the U.S. is dangerous, but to be a friend is fatal.” Withholding needed arms proves as much.
The writer is a senior research analyst for CAMERA, the 65,000-member, Boston-based Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting and Analysis.
