US House of Representatives asks President Biden to transfer weapons to Israel

The Republican-controlled U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill May 16 asking the administration to rescind its decision to delay arms deliveries to Israel.



According to The Hill, the bill passed after 224 votes in favor and 187 against, with the aim of forcing President Joe Biden to rescind his decision to delay the supply of some weapons to Israel, a key ally of Washington in the Middle East.

The majority of votes came from Republicans. Notably, despite calls from the White House and Democratic leaders, 16 Democrats have sided with Republicans

The 16 include staunchly pro-Israel members, lawmakers running for re-election but struggling and those representing districts with large Jewish voters.

Reuters reports that the May 16 bill is likely to be rejected in the Democratic-controlled Senate. Even so, Republicans are determined to push to show their displeasure with President Biden.

Earlier this month, Biden and officials announced a halt to Israeli deliveries of weapons such as heavy bombs, and warned they would not send bombs and artillery shells if Israel attacked Rafah in the Gaza Strip.



The decision stemmed from the belief that Tel Aviv would feel pressure and be forced to take measures to ensure the safety of more than 1 million Palestinians in Rafah before attacking. Israel has vowed to destroy Hamas, saying Rafah is home to its remnants.

At least 35,270 civilians have been killed, after Israel launched its operation in Gaza last October in retaliation for a surprise Hamas attack that killed about 1,200 Israelis. The protracted conflict has left much of Gaza's population homeless, with infrastructure destroyed.

But Republicans accused the incumbent of turning his back on ally Israel after facing pro-Palestinian protests across the United States. "This is a catastrophic decision that has global implications. Clearly it was done as a political calculation and we cannot let this exist," Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson said on May 14.

The passage of the bill on May 16 showed deep divisions over U.S. policy toward Israel in an election year. 10 of the 16 Democrats who supported the bill wrote a letter to national security adviser Jake Sullivan last week. It said it was "deeply concerned" that Biden's warning could lead Hamas and other Iranian-backed groups to believe the U.S. had abandoned Israel

With democracies under attack around the world, the United States should not weaken its ally Israel, especially in its moments of greatest need. U.S. commitments must always be fulfilled," the congressional group argued.

Israel has been a major recipient of U.S. military aid for decades. President Biden's warning to Tel Aviv does not mean that the flow of weapons to Israel will stop. Earlier this week, the U.S. State Department referred a $1 million arms aid package to Israel into the U.S. Congressional review process.