The Biden administration notified Congress on Tuesday that it was moving forward with more than $1 billion in new weapons deals for Israel, U.S. and congressional officials said, a massive arms package less than a week after the White House paused a shipment of bombs over a planned Israeli assault on Rafah.
The latest weapons package includes the potential transfer of $700 million in tank ammunition, $500 million in tactical vehicles and $60 million in mortar rounds, the officials said.
The decision to proceed with the transfers underscored the Biden administration’s reluctance to deepen its rift with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over the Rafah operation by restricting longer-term weapons deals with its closest Middle East ally.
U.S. officials have stressed their opposition to a full-scale Israeli attack in the city, saying it could result in widespread civilian casualties and deepen Gaza’s humanitarian crisis without ending the threat Israel faces from Hamas. But they have registered their opposition so far only by withholding a single shipment of 2,000-pound bombs.
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