“Some of that is because they’ve asked for stuff that we either don’t have the capacity to provide or not willing to provide, not right now.”
The United States’ top general has said that Israel had not received every weapon it has asked for, in part because Washington was “not willing to provide, not right now” at least some of them.
“Although we’ve been supporting them with capability, they’ve not received everything they’ve asked for,” the chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Charles Q. Brown, said on Thursday.
“Some of that is because they’ve asked for stuff that we either don’t have the capacity to provide or not willing to provide, not right now,” Brown added.
The US provides Israel, its longtime ally, with $3.8 billion in annual military assistance.
‘Standard Practice’
According to Reuters news agency, a spokesperson for Brown later on Thursday said his comments were in reference to “a standard practice before providing military aid to any of our allies and partners.”
Navy Captain Jereal Dorsey said in a statement that the US assesses its stockpiles and any possible impact on “our readiness to determine our ability to provide the requested aid”
“There is no change in US policy. The United States continues to provide security assistance to our ally Israel as they defend themselves from Hamas,” Dorsey reportedly said.
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant met with US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin in Washington earlier this week. The Pentagon reportedly said security assistance to Israel was discussed.
Israel’s Long Trail of Duplicity – How Western Support Sowed the Seeds of Gaza Genocide
Staggering Death Toll
Currently on trial before the International Court of Justice for genocide against Palestinians, Israel has been waging a devastating war on Gaza since October 7.
According to Gaza’s Ministry of Health, 32,623 Palestinians have been killed, and 75,092 wounded in Israel’s ongoing genocide in the enclave.
Moreover, at least 7,000 people are unaccounted for, presumed dead under the rubble of their homes throughout the Strip.
Palestinian and international organizations say that the majority of those killed and wounded are women and children.
The Israeli aggression has also resulted in the forceful displacement of nearly two million people from all over the Gaza Strip, with the vast majority of the displaced forced into the densely crowded southern city of Rafah near the border with Egypt – in what has become Palestine’s largest mass exodus since the 1948 Nakba.
Israel says that 1,200 soldiers and civilians were killed during the Al-Aqsa Flood Operation on October 7. Israeli media published reports suggesting that many Israelis were killed on that day by ‘friendly fire’.
(The Palestine Chronicle)
