US paused bomb shipment to Israel before Rafah operation, Defense Secretary says

The United States paused a shipment of bombs to Israel last week over humanitarian concerns about a long-awaited Israel Defense Forces invasion of Rafah, but Israel still pressed forward with the operation in the southern Gaza Strip city, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said.

The planned shipment was set to consist of 3,500 bombs weighing between 500-2,000 pounds, according to The Associated Press. Austin told the Senate Appropriations Defense subcommittee on Wednesday that the U.S. paused "one shipment of high payload munitions."

The U.S. is primarily concerned with how the larger explosives could be used in a dense urban area such as Rafah, where more than 1 million people are living after evacuating other parts of the Gaza Strip after Israel responded to Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023, invasion.

"We’re going to continue to do what’s necessary to ensure that Israel has the means to defend itself," Austin also said. "But that said, we are currently reviewing some near-term security assistance shipments in the context of unfolding events in Rafah."

Israel has ordered about 100,000 people to evacuate Rafah while carrying out what it calls "targeted strikes" on the area. 

The pause in assistance comes as the Biden administration is set to deliver a verdict this week on whether Israel has violated U.S. and international laws during its war in Gaza. 

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