The State Department, led by Secretary of State Antony Blinken, is currently assessing fresh details put forth by the Israeli government concerning a specific Israeli military unit's involvement in severe human rights breaches. The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) and civilian authority units have been under scrutiny for alleged misconduct against Palestinian civilians in the West Bank prior to the October 7 Hamas terror attacks. Secretary Blinken is contemplating the possibility of advising the suspension of U.S. aid to the unit in question under the Leahy Law, which prohibits the provision of weapons or funds for military support to groups with substantiated human rights violations.
The potential decision to suspend U.S. aid to the Israeli military unit is sparking significant public attention and pressure on the Biden administration to hold Israel accountable for violating international human rights standards. This development, if implemented, would mark an unprecedented move in the extensive security partnership that has existed for decades between the United States and Israel. In an undated letter addressed to House Speaker Mike Johnson, Secretary Blinken confirmed that while broader determinations in line with the Leahy Law had been made, the delivery of U.S. assistance to Israel would not be delayed, and the nation would continue to receive the full amount allocated by Congress. This assurance was crucial to Johnson, who had demanded clarity from Blinken before proceeding with a long-pending foreign aid package vote in the House.