Israeli Army Chief Tells Netanyahu to “Apologize”

Israeli Army Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi has demanded an apology from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for the recent comments he made criticizing the army for not putting enough pressure on Hamas to achieve progress on hostage talks local sources reported Tuesday according to Anadolu.

Israel’s Channel 12 said in a press conference Saturday, Netanyahu said “for months, there was no progress because the military pressure was not strong enough, and I thought both for the sake of the hostage deal and for the sake of victory over Hamas, we must enter Rafah.”

Israel launched a ground offensive on Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on May 6, seizing control of the Philadelphi Corridor, including the Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt.

The report also noted military officials interpreted Netanyahu’s comments as implying he wanted action in Rafah, but senior army officers did not follow through, forcing him to put pressure on them.

In a Sunday meeting that was also attended by the heads of Israel’s two main security agencies, Shin Bet and Mossad, Halevi asked Netanyahu to apologize, Channel 12 reported.

In the meeting, Halevi told Netanyahu: “These comments are serious. I demand the prime minister issue an apology.”

However, according to the channel, Netanyahu did not apologize.

A military spokesperson who responded to a request for comment from the channel, said: “We do not address what is said in closed discussions.”

Officials in Netanyahu’s office said they were “unaware of such a statement in this security meeting.”

Since the start of the war on Gaza, disagreements between Netanyahu and military leaders surfaced many times, especially regarding the responsibility for the attacks by Hamas on 7 October 2023.

Israel, flouting a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire, has faced international condemnation amid its continued brutal offensive on Gaza that led to the killing of more than 38,700 Palestinians, mostly women and children, and injury of over 89,000 injured, according to local health authorities.

Over nine months into the Israeli onslaught, vast tracts of Gaza lie in ruins amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water and medicine, the Turkish news agency reported.

Israel is accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice, whose latest ruling ordered it to immediately halt its military operation in the southern city of Rafah, where more than 1 million Palestinians sought refuge from the war before it was invaded on May 6.

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‘Israel Will No Longer Exist in 2026′ – Lieberman Warns

Former Defense Minister Avigador Lieberman deeply criticizes Israel’s handling of the war on Gaza and the current skirmish with Hezbollah in Lebanon.

“Netanyahu is leading Israel to destruction and if the current Knesset coalition continue until 2026, Israel will no longer exist,” he said in a stark way.

“Netanyahu doesn’t know how to manage anything. He is really a very talented person. He is one of the best, if not the best, marketing person in world politics, not only in Israel. He also has rhetorical ability. But his management ability aspires to zero. He is also spineless. These are his two problems. As long as things are going on their own, it’s not working. And today, nothing is going on, not on the security level, that’s what drives Netanyahu The desire to survive in power for another day, another week, that’s all,” he told Maariv.

The  comments of the leader of the Yisrael Beiteinu party are trending on the social media with multiple posts.

Lieberman accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of leading Israel towards total destruction.

Lieberman is repeating what the views of many in Israel, regionally and internationally are saying about Netanyahu leading the country to disaster because of his own domestic troubles and the corruption accusations against against that will probably land hin in jail.

However, he “emphasized that Israel is facing existential threats and is undergoing a multi-dimensional crisis encompassing political, economic, and security issues—the most significant since its establishment,” as stated in the Palestine Chronicle.

Lieberman blamed Netanyahu for the attack on October 7, accusing him of empowering the Palestinian movement Hamas over the years by releasing its leaders according to the electronic website.

Over 38,000 Palestinians were killed and over 88,000 injured in Gaza by Israeli fire since 7 October, 2023.

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US Moves Ahead With 500-pound Bombs to Israel

The US has decided to move ahead with the shipment of 500-pound bombs to Israel, which was previously paused due to concerns over Israel’s potential ground invasion of the southern Gaza city of Rafah and massive killings of civilians, a report stated Wednesday.

The bombs “are in the process of being shipped” after a two-month pause and are expected to arrive in Israel in the “coming weeks,” The Wall Street Journal reported, citing an administration official and reported in Anadolu.

In May, the Biden administration paused a planned shipment to Israel of 2,000-pound and 500-pound bombs amid concerns about Israel’s plans for a possible ground assault on Rafah, where 1.5 million displaced Palestinians sought refuge on top of the city’s pre-war population of more than 200,000.

“Civilians have been killed in Gaza as a consequence of those bombs and other ways in which they go after population centers,” US President Joe Biden acknowledged in an interview with CNN, referring to 2,000-pound bombs, and described Israel’s bombing of Gaza as “indiscriminate.”

“Heavier 2,000-pound bombs that were meant to be part of the same shipment are still on hold,” the official told WSJ.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu criticized the Biden administration in June for “withholding weapons and ammunition to Israel” in recent months, adding that Secretary of State Antony Blinken assured him that restrictions would be lifted on arms transfers to Israel.

“We’ve been clear that our concern has been on the end-use of the 2,000-lb bombs, particularly for Israel’s Rafah campaign, which they have announced they are concluding,” a US official told Anadolu when asked about the shipment of 500-pound bombs.

“Because of how these shipments are put together, other munitions may sometimes be co-mingled. That’s what happened here with the 500-lb bombs, since our main concern had been and remains the potential use of 2,000-lb bombs in Rafah and elsewhere in Gaza,” the official said. “Our concern was not about the 500-lb bombs. Those are moving forward as part of the usual process.”

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said Wednesday that Tel Aviv is willing to open the Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt, but without allowing Hamas to return to the area.

In early May, the Israeli army seized control of the Palestinian side of the Rafah crossing on the border with Egypt as part of a wide-scale military operation which resulted in civilian casualties and the suspension of humanitarian aid deliveries according to the Turkish news agency.

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Will Netanyahu Get to Address Congress?

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is considering avoiding a stopover in Europe on his way to the US over fears that the International Criminal Court (ICC) is readying to issue an arrest warrant against him over the Israeli army’s crimes in Gaza according to Anadolu.

Netanyahu is to travel to the US and deliver a speech before the US Congress on July 24. He is also expected to possibly meet US President Joe Biden.

But there is much speculation about his coming trip with many on the social media woundering how he will get to Washington amidst the logistics involved in flying non-stop.

On 20 May, ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan requested arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Gaza Strip. Khan also requested warrants for three of the Hamas group’s top leaders including its chief Ismail Haniyeh.

Everyone is waiting for the arrest warrants to become effective and many think they could be any time soon.

Israeli KAN public broadcaster said Netanyahu’s office reviewed the matter of stopping in Europe on his way to Washington as his plane is unable to make a transatlantic flight while carrying a full load of passengers.

His office reviewed the option of a stopover in the Czech Republic or Hungary; these two countries are seen as Israeli friends and called ICC arrest requests “unacceptable.”

KAN, however, noted Netanyahu in the end decided to go for a direct flight to Washington with a limited number of passengers on board.

While the US is not an ICC member, receiving Netanyahu despite an international arrest warrant could expose it to much criticism.

Israel also is not an ICC member, whereas Palestine was accepted as an affiliate in 2015.

Set up in 2002, the ICC is an independent international body not affiliated with the UN or any other international organization, and its decisions are binding.

Israel, flouting a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate cease-fire, has faced international condemnation amid its continued brutal offensive on Gaza since an Oct. 7, 2023 attack by Hamas.

Nearly 38,200 Palestinians have since been killed, mostly women and children, and over 87,900 others injured, according to local health authorities the Turkish News agency reported.

Nine months into the Israeli war, vast tracts of Gaza lie in ruins amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water and medicine.

Israel stands accused of genocide at the ICC, whose latest ruling ordered it to immediately halt its military operation in the southern city of Rafah, where over a million Palestinians had sought refuge from the war before it was invaded on May 6 according to the Turkish news agency.

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American Weapons, Israeli Slaughter

The US continues to provide military aid to Israel for its operations in the Gaza Strip, despite mounting civilian casualties and violations of international law Anadolu news reports.

Besides being Tel Aviv’s most important political ally, Washington remains the largest supplier of weapons to the Israeli military.

The Congress approved $17 billion in military aid to Israel under a $95 billion foreign military assistance package in April.

Israel has killed more than 38,000 Palestinians since a cross-border attack that claimed 1,200 lives. The actions have triggered a humanitarian disaster.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s handling of the Gaza assault has unsettled US President Joe Biden. Still, there has not been a serious restriction on arms supply.

Netanyahu even accused the Biden administration of restricting military aid, with US officials confirming a pause in shipment that included 2,000-pound bombs, citing concerns over civilian casualties in the besieged enclave according to the Turkish news agency.

Leaked figures to the media, however, suggest that Washington’s action came too late and may not be effective in practice.

Official sources, who spoke to Reuters on condition of anonymity, revealed that from Oct. 7-June 28, the US shipped at least 14,000 MK-84 bombs used in bomber aircraft to Israel, along with 6,500 227 kg bombs, 3,000 precision-guided Hellfire missiles, 1,000 bunker-buster bombs, 2,600 small-caliber bombs dropped from aircraft and other munitions.

The Biden administration also allowed a symbolic one-time shipment of one-ton aircraft munitions in May.

An internal memo shared among Democratic leaders in the House of Representatives and other members of Congress said the halted shipment of one-ton bombs accounted for less than 1% of military support provided by the US to Israel since Oct. 7.

US has sent weapons to Israel by air

An official speaking to CNN did not deny shipment flights were detected between US Air Force bases and Israel, and said the flights represent a steady flow of Pentagon aid to Israel.

The CNN said from October to January 2024, an average of 15 cargo flights occurred daily, later decreasing to about five.

Records indicated that tracking some military flights was difficult due to frequent transponder shutdowns.

Research by the Haaretz newspaper in Israel revealed that 173 military and civilian cargo flights originating from US military bases worldwide transported weapons and ammunition to Israel.

Most of the flights landed at the Nevatim Airbase near the southern Israeli city of Be’er Sheva.

There were 22 flights in October, 47 in November, 32 in December, 20 in January, eight in February, 11 in March, 17 in April, seven in May and nine in June.

The shipments are said to have included 155mm artillery shells, Joint Direct Attack Munition guidance kits, bombs, missiles for Israel’s air defense system, and drones and ammunition for the Iron Dome defense system.


Israel receiving $310 billion in aid from US

The US provides Israel with $3.8 billion in military aid annually, regardless of whether it is involved in a conflict.

According to the most recent records compiled by the Council on Foreign Relations, Israel appears to have received the largest share of US foreign aid since its establishment in 1948, totaling $310 billion.


US legally ensures Israel’s ‘qualitative military edge’ in region

In 2008, another law passed in the US introduced the concept of “Qualitative Military Edge,” a multi-faceted endeavor to ensure Israel has access to technologically advanced defense systems. It is also said to involve building operational capability through exercises, training, and personnel exchanges.

Hence, Israel is expected to be the first country to access the most advanced US military weapons and platforms.

Israel has so far received 39 out of the 50 advanced F-35 fighter jets it purchased from the US. But a $3 billion agreement was signed last month for an additional 25 of the fighter jets, world’s most advanced, which would bring the Israeli Air Force’s F-35 fleet to 75 in the coming years.

Israel’s use of US weapons violated international law

A State Department report in May said Israel’s use of US-provided weapons in Gaza likely violated international humanitarian law.

The report, after a presidential review following pressure from lawmakers and others, however, stopped short of making any final conclusions, and did not link specific US weapons to individual attacks by Israeli forces in Gaza, Anadolu ends its feature.

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