US sending Israel 20,000 assault rifles that Biden had delayed, say sources

WASHINGTON - The Trump administration moved forward with the sale of more than 20,000 US-made assault rifles to Israel in March, according to a document seen by Reuters and a source familiar with the matter, pushing ahead with a sale that the administration of former president Joe Biden had delayed over concerns they could be used by extremist Israeli settlers.

The State Department sent a notification to Congress on March 6 for the US$24 million (S$32 million) sale of the Colt Carbine 5.56mm caliber fully automatic rifles, saying the end user would be the Israeli National Police, according to the document.

The rifle sale is a small transaction next to the billions of dollars worth of weapons that Washington supplies to Israel.

But it drew attention when the Biden administration delayed the sale over concerns that the weapons could end up in the hands of Israeli settlers, some of whom have carried out attacks on Palestinians in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.

The Biden administration has imposed sanctions on individuals and entities accused of committing violence in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, which has seen a rise in settler attacks on Palestinians.

On his first day in office on Jan 20, Mr Trump issued an executive order

rescinding US sanctions on Israeli settlers

in a reversal of US policy. Since then, his administration has approved the sale of billions of dollars worth of weapons to Israel.

The March 6 congressional notification said the US government had taken into account “political, military, economic, human rights, and arms control considerations”.

The State Department did not respond to a request for comment when asked if the administration sought assurances from Israel on the use of the weapons.

Close ties

Since a 1967 Middle East war, Israel has occupied the West Bank, which Palestinians want as the core of an independent state, and has built settlements that most countries deem illegal. Israel disputes this, citing historical and biblical ties to the land.

Settler violence had been on the rise prior to the eruption of the Gaza war, and has worsened since the conflict began over a year ago. 

Mr Trump has forged close ties to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, pledging to back Israel in its war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

His administration has in some cases pushed ahead with Israel arms sales despite requests from Democratic lawmakers that the sales be paused until they received more information.

The US Senate on April 3 overwhelmingly

rejected a bid to block US$8.8 billion in arms sales to Israel

over human rights concerns, voting 82-15 and 83-15 to reject two resolutions of disapproval over sales of massive bombs and other offensive military equipment.

The resolutions were offered by Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont, an independent who caucuses with Democrats.

The rifle sale had been put on hold after Democratic lawmakers objected and sought information on how Israel was going to use them. The congressional committees eventually cleared the sale but the Biden administration kept the hold in place.

The latest episode in the decades-old Israeli-Palestinian conflict began with a

Hamas attack on Israeli communities on Oct 7, 2023,

with gunmen killing 1,200 people and taking more than 250 hostages, according to Israeli tallies. Israel's campaign has so far killed more than 50,000 Palestinians, Gaza health authorities say.

Israel’s National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, a far-right member of Mr Netanyahu’s government, oversees the Israeli police force.

The Times of Israel newspaper in November 2023 reported that his ministry has put “a heavy emphasis on arming civilian security squads” in the aftermath of Oct 7, 2023, attacks. REUTERS