US says its Israel policy unchanged after report on leveraging weapons sales
- NBC reported that the US was considering slowing some weapons sales to Israel
- The heavy death toll from Israel’s war in Gaza has led to much international alarm
The White House said on Sunday there was no change in its Israel policy after NBC News reported the United States was discussing using weapon sales to Israel as leverage to convince the Israeli government to scale back its military assault in Gaza.
“Israel has a right and obligation to defend themselves against the threat of Hamas, while abiding by international humanitarian law and protecting civilian lives, and we remain committed to support Israel in its fight against Hamas,” a spokesperson for the White House National Security Council said. “We have done so since October 7, and will continue to. There has not been a change in our policy.”
NBC News reported earlier on Sunday that at the direction of the White House, the Pentagon has been reviewing what weaponry Israel has requested that could be used as leverage. The report cited sources and said no final decisions were made.
The report added that the US is considering slowing or pausing the deliveries in hopes that doing so will make the Israelis take actions such as opening humanitarian corridors to provide more aid to Palestinian civilians.
“There has been no request from the White House for DoD (Department of Defence) to slow down weapons deliveries to Israel,” a White House official said when asked about the NBC News report. “And not aware of any request to review weapons to potentially slow walk deliveries either.”