Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed nearly 35,000 people in Gaza since October 2023.
Washington:
A long-awaited State Department report on Friday said Israel likely violated norms of international law by using U.S. weapons, but did not find enough evidence to block the shipments.
The report states that it is “reasonable to assess” that Israel, which receives about $3 billion in weapons from the US per year, has used weapons in a manner inconsistent with humanitarian rights standards, but that the United States has failed to ” conclusive conclusions.”
The report was delayed for several days amid debate at the State Department over whether to reprimand Israel, a historic U.S. ally that has faced growing criticism over its death toll in the seven-month war in Gaza.
The State Department finally submitted its report two days after President Joe Biden publicly threatened to withhold certain bombs and artillery shells if Israel pursues an attack on the crowded city of Rafah.
The report does not affect that decision, with the White House reiterating on Friday that it was concerned about Israeli military action around the southern city of Gaza, where around 1.4 million Palestinians have taken shelter.
Biden, facing a furor over the war within his Democratic Party months before the election, in February issued a memo known as NSM-20 that called on countries receiving U.S. military aid to provide “credible and credible” assurances that they are fulfilling human rights. laws.
Israel – which launched a war against Hamas after the militants carried out the deadliest attack ever on the country on October 7 – has provided assurances to the United States and “identified a series of processes to ensure compliance that are embedded in all the levels of its military forces.” decision making,” said the public version of the report, which was submitted to Congress.
“The nature of the conflict in Gaza makes it difficult to assess or reach conclusive conclusions about individual incidents,” he said.
“However, given Israel’s significant dependence on U.S.-made defense articles, it is reasonable to assess that defense articles covered by NSM-20 have been used by Israeli security forces since October 7 in cases inconsistent with their obligations IHL or best practices established to mitigate civilian harm,” he said, referring to international humanitarian law.
– Accepting warranties –
The report also states that although the Israel Defense Forces have “the knowledge, experience and tools” to minimize damage, “results on the ground, including high levels of civilian casualties, raise substantial questions about whether the IDF is use them effectively in all cases.”
But despite some “serious concerns,” the report states that all countries receiving U.S. military aid have provided sufficiently credible and reliable assurances “to permit continued supply of defense items covered by NSM-20.”
A US official described the report as a snapshot and said the State Department would continue to monitor weapons use.
The other recipients of US military aid covered in the report were Colombia, Iraq, Kenya, Nigeria, Somalia and Ukraine.
Patrick Gaspard, president of the Center for American Progress, a left-leaning think tank, called the report disappointing, saying it ignored “overwhelming evidence” about Israel’s actions.
“It is difficult to believe that the administration looks at what is happening in Gaza and cannot conclude that Israel violated the terms of use of American weapons,” he said.
Republicans, for their part, have criticized NSM-20 since it was published, saying it hampers Israel’s campaign against Hamas and that the United States already has rules for dealing with human rights.
– ‘Deep concerns’ about aid –
The report also stopped short of concluding that Israel was violating another fundamental concern – humanitarian aid.
He said the United States has “deep concerns” about “Israel’s action and inaction, which have contributed significantly to the lack of sustained and predictable provision of needed assistance” to the Palestinians.
But it said the United States does not “currently assess that the Israeli government is prohibiting or otherwise restricting the transportation or delivery of U.S. humanitarian assistance.”
The United Nations has warned of the risk of famine in the Gaza Strip, where virtually the entire population has been displaced due to a consistent lack of food, water or energy.
The unprecedented attack on Israel on October 7 resulted in the deaths of more than 1,170 people, most of them civilians, according to Israeli data.
Israel’s retaliatory offensive killed nearly 35,000 people in Gaza, most of them women and children, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-controlled territory.
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