The Biden administration in recent days quietly authorized the transfer of billions of dollars in bombs and fighter jets to Israel despite Washington’s concerns about an anticipated military offensive in southern Gaza that could threaten the lives of hundreds of thousands of Palestinian civilians.

The new arms packages include more than 1,800 MK84 2,000-pound bombs and 500 MK82 500-pound bombs, according to Pentagon and State Department officials familiar with the matter. The 2,000 pound bombs have been linked to previous mass-casualty events throughout Israel’s military campaign in Gaza. These officials, like some others, spoke to The Washington Post on the condition of anonymity because recent authorizations have not been disclosed publicly.

The 2,000 pound bombs, capable of leveling city blocks and leaving craters in the earth 40 feet across and larger, are almost never used anymore by Western militaries in densely populated locations due to the risk of civilian casualties.

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  • bartolomeo@suppo.fiEnglish
    81·
    8 months ago

    There’s another kind of interesting point in this article and in Israel’s history in general. It seems like every Israeli accusation is a confession- from mass sexual abuse to needing to defend themselves from invaders to

    Israeli officials deny that their military campaign has been indiscriminate and say civilian casualties are the fault of Hamas for embedding its fighters among the population in Gaza.

    When the Zionists started taking over Palestine in the early 1900s, they needed the cover and political legitimacy of regular people to disguise and obscure their terrorism, so the mass immigration of Jews to Palestine was a way for Zionists to embed their fighters among the Jewish population in Palestine. Then they could hide behind the shield of anti-semitism while they pursue their goal of expansion and ethnic cleansing.

    Zionist leaders, in particular David Ben-Gurion, viewed the acceptance of the plan as a tactical step and a stepping stone to future territorial expansion over all of Palestine.

    I really haven’t found any accusation that Israel has made against Hamas that they are not themselves guilty of, but I would be happy to learn of some.

    Edit: https://apnews.com/article/israel-hamas-war-news-01-30-2024-b1ba33c7c0c5c62f85932a20c2a0bc92