The US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken defended the decision to stop the delivery of 3,500 bombs to Israel over concerns they could be used against the Gaza city of Rafah. He said that Israel does not have a “reliable plan” to protect the 1.4 million civilians who sought refuge in the city, Reuters reported, quoted by BTA.
Speaking on ABC News, Blinken said US President Joe Biden remains ready to help Israel defend itself and the shipment of 3,500 bombs weighing 907 and 227 kilograms is the only package of US weapons being held back .
That could change, he said, if Israel launches a full-scale attack on Rafah, as Israel says it plans to rid it of militants from the extremist group Hamas.
Biden warned Israel that if it “starts this major military operation in Rafah, we will not support and provide certain systems for that operation,”, Blinken said.
„We have real concerns about how they will use them,” he added. According to him, Israel must “have a clear, reliable plan for the protection of civilians, the likes of which we have not seen before.
The city of Rafah is home to about 1.4 million Palestinians, many of whom fled there from fighting and Israeli bombardment in other parts of Gaza, Reuters recalls.