Israeli official confirms US nixed arms sale. (TOI).
A senior Israeli official confirmed to Israeli media that the US had suspended a shipment of Hellfire missiles to Israel amid worsening ties over fighting in Gaza.
The decision to hold off on the transfer was most likely on grounds of increased diplomatic tension, the official said, corroborating a Wall Street Journal report earlier in the day that claimed the White House and State Department had been angered by a transfer of arms to Israel and had ordered greater oversight into future sales.
The report claimed that US-Israeli tensions are at a record high, with US President Barack Obama and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said to hold a “particularly combative phone call on Wednesday” and officials on both sides resorting to name-calling.
Likud MKs were harshly critical of the US decision to suspend the missile shipment and rushed to Netanyahu’s defense following the report. MK Miri Regev said the move was proof “that we can only rely on ourselves” and MK Tzipi Hotovely praised the prime minister for taking a stand against the US pressure on Israeli security interests during the operation. She added, however, that despite the rift, Israel and the US have shared goals.
“We must take into account that in two and a half years’ time, President Obama won’t be sitting in the White House, and we will remain here with the threats and the challenges,” said MK Danny Danon, who was fired by the prime minister during the operation from his position as deputy defense minister.
Danon’s comments echoed that of unnamed Israeli officials who told The Wall Street Journal that Netanyahu felt he could wait out Obama’s last two years in office while relying on firm support from Congress.
Other politicians attempted to patch up the divide.Hmmm.....It's clear to every Jew where the 'problem' lays. Read the full story here.
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