McCaul Calls for Faster Arms Shipments to Israel
House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul, R-Texas, urged the Biden administration July 31 to speed up the delivery of critical weapon systems to Israel following Hezbollah’s recent attack that killed 12 children in Israel’s Golan Heights.
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"The administration must immediately advance delivery of these weapons to send a clear message that the U.S.’ commitment to our ally Israel is genuinely ironclad," McCaul said in a statement.
McCaul accused the administration of “slow-walking” such transfers by delaying the final notification to Congress.
"Historically, these weapon sales cases are given final notification to Congress within a few days" of approval by the leaders of the House Foreign Affairs Committee and the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, a majority spokesperson for House Foreign Affairs told Export Compliance Daily. "And for these specific cases, it has taken over two months."
The spokesperson declined to say which specific types of equipment or ammunition have been held up, citing the need "to protect information regarding Israel’s military planning."
The White House didn't immediately respond to a request for comment on McCaul's statement. But it said in May that the administration had so far paused only one shipment, which included 2,000-pound bombs, to limit civilian casualties in the Gaza war (see 2405150051).