U.S. officials revealed to the Wall Street Journal that the Biden administration has postponed the sale of a fleet of "F-15" fighter jets to Israel, despite Congress approving the deal last month. The American newspaper noted that the State Department was expected to formally notify Congress of the $18 billion deal after two senior Democrats retracted their objections, but it has not yet done so.
On May 22, two prominent Democratic leaders in Congress objected to the deal due to concerns about civilian casualties in the war in Gaza. The U.S. State Department told the Wall Street Journal, "There is no policy to slow down arms transfers," adding, "We are looking tactically at the timing. It is a matter of when."
In contrast, the White House declined to comment. The sale of 50 American fighter jets is one of the largest arms deals with Israel in recent years, coming at a time when President Joe Biden faces calls from leaders in his party to withhold U.S. arms to pressure Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to agree to end the war in Gaza.
On Tuesday, Netanyahu stated that U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken assured him that the Biden administration is working to lift restrictions on arms shipments to Israel. This is not the first time that discussions have arisen about American restrictions on arming Israel amidst the ongoing war in Gaza for over 8 months.
