Washington – US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken announced that Washington has not yet stopped supplying precision-guided munitions to Israel, but is studying this possibility.
Blinken said in an interview with CBS Television, in response to a question to clarify whether the United States had temporarily stopped supplying any other munitions to Israel, including precision-guided munitions, in addition to 3,500 aerial bombs, that “the answer to this question is “She doesn’t.”
He added that Washington made clear “that if Israel launches a large-scale military operation in Rafah (in the southern Gaza Strip), we will not provide it with certain systems.” But at the moment the only thing we are delaying are high-powered bombs.”
The US Secretary of State explained, “Washington continues to consult with Israel, taking into account the impact that these weapons might have if used in densely populated areas, including Rafah.”
He stressed that the United States expects Israel to deliver a plan to ensure the security of the civilian population in Rafah, in addition to a plan “relating to what will happen following the end of the conflict in the Gaza Strip,” noting that the United States has not yet received either of them.
At the same time, Blinken doubted Israel’s ability to completely neutralize the threat posed by the Palestinian faction movement even if it carried out an operation in Rafah.
Blinken said: “We see that some areas of Gaza that Israel cleared of factional movement are returning to the movement, including the north, including Khan Yunis,” stressing that the operation in Rafah, which is likely to be accompanied by “heavy human losses in Civilian ranks “do not guarantee the destruction of the factional movement.
At the same time, he said that the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza “will create a vacuum” that will likely be “filled by factional movement once more.”
Source: Novosti
#Blinken #Washington #stop #supplying #precision #weapons #Israel
2024-05-13 06:26:47