As the war between Israel and Hamas continues, negotiations are said to be stalled to secure the release of hostages taken through the terror organization, and Israeli forces continue to conduct raids on the southern Gaza city of Rafah in anticipation of an imaginable full-scale invasion.
Pentagon press secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder said Tuesday that the United States continues to withhold a single shipment of heavy bombs to Israel and that a final resolution has been made on that shipment.
Ryder refused to respond to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s accusations that the United States is slowing shipments to Israel in general.
“We are surely committed to Israel’s inherent right to protect itself,” Ryder said. “Since Hamas’s brutal attack on October 7, we have injected billions of dollars in security aid into Israel to allow it to protect itself. And we will continue to provide you with the safety assistance you want to protect yourself. “
Two U. S. officials involved in approving arms transfers to Israel told ABC News that shipments continue to receive the green light as the government fulfills long-standing ongoing orders or new requests made after the war began.
The only exception, officials said, is the frozen shipment of 2,000-pound bombs. Officials said the resolution to suspend the handover was made through the White House and that, if it is eventually lifted, they expect that order to come from the White House. also.
While the process of delivering authorized transfers is being rolled out across a wide network, including the Ministry of Defense and private companies, officials said they are aware of any other delays that could be perceived as a bottleneck.
In the early weeks and months of the conflict, the Biden leadership has worked to speed up deliveries to Israel. Twice in December, Secretary of State Antony Blinken invoked emergency authority to accelerate arms sales to Israel, circumventing congressional approval.
-Anne Flaherty and Shannon Crawford of ABC News
The IDF said Tuesday that “operational plans for an offensive in Lebanon have been approved and validated, and decisions have been made to continue strengthening troop readiness on the ground. “
The White House is concerned about the opening of a second war front between Israel and Lebanon on Israel’s northern border and has sent a senior adviser to President Joe Biden to the region.
Amos Hochstein, envoy and deputy assistant to the White House, met on Tuesday with Nabih Berri, speaker of the Lebanese parliament.
“This factor is of interest to everyone temporally and diplomatically. It’s achievable and urgent,” Hochstein said, according to a transcript provided through the White House.
Asked if the two countries were on the verge of breaking up the war, Hochstein said he believed a diplomatic solution was possible, adding: “But we are in a very serious situation. “
The assembly followed Hochstein’s in-person meetings with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Israeli officials on Monday.
White House national security spokesman John Kirby said Monday that the leadership is concerned about the expansion of the Gaza war into Lebanon.
“If we were concerned about the option of an escalation and a second large-scale front there in the north, we would still be concerned about international relations as intense as those that Mr. Hochstein has right now,” Kirby told reporters. Call to the press.
-Anne Flaherty of ABC News
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday criticized the United States for withholding certain weapons.
Netanyahu said in his recent meeting with Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Israel: “It is unlikely that in recent months the leadership has withheld weapons and ammunition from Israel. “
“Israel, America’s closest ally, is fighting for its life, fighting Iran and our other common enemies,” Netanyahu said. “Secretary Blinken confides in me that the administration is working day and night to remove those bottlenecks. In fact, I hope that will be the case.
Netanyahu then quoted former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill.
“During World War II, Churchill said to the United States, ‘Give us the equipment, we will do the homework,'” Netanyahu said. “And I say, give us the equipment and we’re going to finish the job to a large extent. “faster. “
At a news conference on Tuesday, Blinken declined to recount exactly what he said in personal diplomatic conversations and did not deny assuring Netanyahu that the United States is working to remove obstacles hindering the supply of U. S. weapons and ammunition to Israel.
Blinken is under pressure over the Biden administration’s commitment to protect Israel.
“It is very important not to forget that our security relationship with Israel goes far beyond Gaza. Israel faces a multiplicity of threats and challenges, adding in the north, from Hezbollah, Iran, the Houthis in the Red Sea, teams aligned with Israel and, in many cases, indebted to Iran,” Blinken said.
President Joe Biden “will do everything he can to make sure that Israel has what it wants to protect itself against those threats,” Blinken said. “And an important component of that is also making sure that by offering that assistance to Israel, it has a strong deterrent effect, which is the most productive way to provoke more conflicts, more wars, what we’re already going through: to see Gaza spread to other regions. “
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said the leadership was surprised by Netanyahu’s claim that the United States would retain its weapons.
“In general, we don’t know what he’s talking about,” he said Tuesday.
The IDF is “weeks” away from concluding the peak of its questionable ground invasion in and around Rafah in southern Gaza, Israel Defense Forces spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari told ABC News.
“We are here to dismantle the military cadre of the Rafah Brigade [Hamas],” Hagari said on Monday.
“We only have a few weeks left to achieve this goal,” he said.
The IDF now controls more than 60 areas of the Rafah area, Israeli defense officials told ABC News on Monday.
-Tom Soufi Burridge, Hugo Leenhardt and Dana Savir of ABC News