The U.S. State Department has determined that at least five Israeli military units were involved in gross violations of human rights, but is holding back on imposing any consequences amid discussions with the Israeli government.
The State Department said Monday that the violations are specific to Israel’s military operations among Palestinian communities in the West Bank and predate Israel’s current war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
But the State Department’s determination and response signal the challenge for the Biden administration in being a key weapons supplier and military partner to Israel amid the growing global outcry over its conduct in Palestinian territories and accusations that Israeli forces are violating international humanitarian law.
Under the federal Leahy law, the U.S. government is barred from providing weapons to foreign militaries or security units that are found to have engaged in human rights abuses or violated international humanitarian law.
State Department deputy spokesperson Vedant Patel argued Monday that the administration is in compliance with the Leahy law despite not imposing any restrictions on military assistance to Israel.
Patel said that while the State Department determined a handful of Israeli military units engaged in gross human rights violations, they are in discussions with the Israeli government to address the violations.
The State Department is reviewing information provided by the Israeli government related to a fifth Israeli military unit that, Patel said, would influence what actions the administration would impose.
“We continue to be in consultations and engagements with the government of Israel. They have submitted additional information as it pertains to that unit, and we’re continuing to have those conversations, consistent with a memorandum of understanding that we have with the Government of Israel that was entered into in 2021,” Patel said.
Patel’s remarks prompted pushback from reporters at the State Department press conference, who raised questions over Secretary of State Antony Blinken announcing he had made a determination under the Leahy law on April 19, but that the department did not address those findings for 10 days.
Patel described the procedure as an “ongoing process.”
The allegations against the units come as Israel is under intense pressure and global isolation over the toll on Palestinian civilians in Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza, and that comes on top of decades of scrutiny over Israel’s multiple conflicts with Hamas in the Strip.
Written with agency reports