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Having planned to do so last week, the U.S. announced that it finds five units of the IDF guilty of human rights violations. How will this affect Israel and our relationship with them?
From Fox News. The U.S. found five units of the Israel Defense Forces responsible “for individual incidents of gross violations of human rights,” the State Department announced on Monday — though whether funding to the American ally could be cut over such abuses under the so-called “Leahy Laws” still hangs in the balance.
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At a press briefing, State Department principal deputy spokesman Vedant Patel told reporters that the human rights violations happened all before the Oct. 7 attacks by Hamas militants on southern Israel and none happened in Gaza. Four of the units have “effectively remediated,” he said, while the U.S. continues “in consultations and engagements with the government of Israel” on the remaining unit.
“They have submitted additional information as it pertains to that unit. And we’re continuing to have those conversations consistent with the memorandum of understanding that we have with the government of Israel that was entered into in 2021,” he said. …
When pressed by a reporter, Patel admitted that the fifth unit is still eligible to receive U.S. arms at this stage. …
A senior State Department official told Fox News that Secretary of State Antony Blinken has raised the matter with Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant.
The State Department says on its website that “the term ‘Leahy law’ refers to two statutory provisions prohibiting the U.S. Government from using funds for assistance to units of foreign security forces where there is credible information implicating that unit in the commission of gross violations of human rights.” …
The development comes as Israeli officials are growing concerned that the International Criminal Court could soon issue arrest warrants against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other top officials over charges related to the war in Gaza, reports say. …
America must be a friend to Israel at this time. Share your prayers and scriptures for our relationship with God’s nation below!
(Excerpt from Fox News. Photo Credit: Israel Defense Forces – Kfir Brigade IDF Officers Practice Urban Warfare, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons)