Democratic lawmakers in the US Congress announced, on Tuesday, that they will not vote in favor of the budget if it includes a provision granting Israel military aid to support the Iron Dome system.
The official Israeli channel, Kan, said that Democrats removed from the budget a provision that gives Israel one billion dollars to purchase Iron Dome interceptor missiles.
Congressional Appropriations Committee spokeswoman Rosa DeLauro, D, said funding for the Iron Dome system will be included in a separate vote later this year, according to the same source.
Democratic Majority Leader Steny Hoyer spoke with Israeli Foreign Minister Yair Lapid about the issue and told him that the talk was a “technical delay”, stemming from a debate in Congress about the US budget deficit ceiling, and that the US was committed to providing assistance in the near future.
For its part, the Hebrew “Walla” website said that the Democrats’ position came just hours before the passage of the budget bill in Congress and against the backdrop of criticism of Israel’s policy in the West Bank and Gaza.
He added, “This is a rare event in which the US Congress does not agree to help Israel for defensive purposes.”
The Democrats’ decision was widely criticized by Republican members of Congress, according to the same source.
The administration of US President Joe Biden has previously pledged on more than one occasion to supply the Israeli “Iron Dome” with ammunition.
Last year, Washington granted Israel $3.8 billion in financial aid, as part of a long-term annual commitment, as part of an agreement signed by former US President Barack Obama in 2016, granting Tel Aviv an aid package of $38 billion over 10 years, all for military purposes.
Tel Aviv will obtain from Washington the Tamir interceptor missiles used in the “Iron Dome” system, and the price of each missile is 50 thousand dollars.
During the war launched by the Israeli army on the Gaza Strip, between May 10 and 21, it used large quantities of Iron Dome anti-missile missiles to counter the shells fired by Palestinian factions from the Gaza Strip into Israeli areas.
The recent Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip caused widespread destruction of housing units and infrastructure; It exacerbated poverty levels. –
