Sending $4bln in arms to 'Israel' has Marco Rubio bypass Congress: NYT
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Secretary of State Marco Rubio bypassed Congress for the second time in a month to approve $4 billion in arms to "Israel."
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Marco Rubio appears before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee for his confirmation hearing, on January 15, 2025. (AP)
Secretary of State Marco Rubio has used "emergency authorities" to circumvent Congress and deliver $4 billion in armaments to "Israel", marking the second time in a month that the Trump administration has avoided the legislative approval procedure for supplying munitions to the occupation.
Rubio signed a declaration to expedite the transfer of weapons and equipment to the Israeli regime after the Donald Trump-led administration approved nearly $12 billion in foreign military sales.
The US "will continue to use all available tools to fulfill America’s long-standing commitment to Israel’s security, including means to counter security threats," Rubio said in a statement.
At least one congressional official privately raised concern about the bypassing of the review, as revealed by The New York Times.
Several cases of armaments to be sent to "Israel" were being reviewed by Congress. But one large case worth about $2 billion had not been sent by the State Department to Congress for review, said the official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to talk candidly about sensitive weapons deals.
On Friday, the Pentagon disclosed the specifics of the sale to "Israel", detailing numerous conceivable bomb combinations that may be delivered, including more than 35,000 2,000-pound explosives.
"Israel" has been using 2,000-pound bombs in densely populated Gaza, despite US military concerns about their suitability for urban warfare. After initially withholding a shipment, the Biden administration later allowed it, but the Trump administration delivered it after taking office.
This comes as the Israeli occupation halted all humanitarian goods into Gaza in what experts have called a blatant disregard for international law.
Aside from the $2 billion bombs, additional military equipment includes bulldozers, more bombs, and GPS-guidance kits for unguided or "dumb" bombs.
The House Foreign Affairs Committee and the Senate Foreign Relations Committee conducted an informal review of the equipment, during which aides and legislators could question the State Department before approving the instructions. Typically, such informal review of arms for "Israel" is expected to take no more than 20 days.
However, in early February, the State Department bypassed this process and announced the shipment of $8 billion in arms to "Israel", as approved by the Biden administration.
Earlier, President Trump rescinded a February 2024 directive issued by former US President Joe Biden, ending supposed safeguards on the use of US weapons. Biden had issued the directive amid the Israeli war on the Gaza Strip, where American-made and supplied weapons had been infamously used to commit war crimes and facilitated the Israeli genocide of the Palestinian people.
