US Approves Annual $3.3 Billion in Aid to "Israel"
After sparking controversy, the US house of representatives passed a law, on Friday, that limits security assistance to "Israel" at $3.3 billion annually.
The “Israel News 24” website reported that the US House of Representatives approved a bill today, Friday, that limits security assistance to “Israel” at $3.3 billion annually, and ensures funding for a “series of programs aimed at furthering peace in the region.”
The bill was disputed in the US Congress and was approved after the representatives of the Democratic Party supported it, while opposed by Republicans.
In line with the bill, the US will provide “Israel” with $3.3 billion in “Security assistance” annually, according to the agreement with former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu with the former administration of former President Barack Obama in 2016.
The bill also authorizes a $50 million budget to “support economic opportunities between Israelis and Palestinians, in addition to demanding the establishment of a Palestinian state and other causes that Republicans believe create problems for “Israel”. It is believed in Congress that “these provisions will remain at the level of a verbal statement only”.
Additionally, $2 million was approved to support “US-Israel joint development projects, which include water, agriculture, energy, humanitarian assistance, climate change support, public health programs, and others,” and $6 million to fund Israeli and Arab scientists in joint efforts.
This appears to be the first time the law specifies a budget provided by the US in which it demands “more transparency in the contents of the study used in schools run by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), with the goal to end anti-Semitism and incitement from educational books." according to the law.
The Democratic majority welcomed the approval of the bill. Lobbyist Mark Millman stated only 3 Democrats voted against it, depicting that the “vast majority of Democrats in Congress support Israel.”
The American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) said in a statement “This critical funding, with no added political conditions, reflects the strong bipartisan support for Israel’s security in Congress and the Biden Administration.”
In May, during the Israeli aggression on occupied Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip in the battle of “Saif al-Quds”, US President Joe Biden approved a deal to sell $735 million worth of precision-guided weapons to “Israel.