Emergency Arms Sale to Israel Undermines Accountability

Overview:

The article by Allison McManus, Laura Kilbury, and Robert Benson at the Center for American Progress critiques the U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken's decision to use emergency authority for the immediate sale of nearly 14,000 120-millimeter tank munition cartridges to Israel. This decision bypassed the standard 15-day period of congressional review and occurred amid concerns over Israel's failure to protect civilians in a military campaign that has claimed over 18,000 lives.

Key Points:

1. The emergency arms sale to Israel undermines effective oversight of arms transfers and contradicts the Biden administration’s policies on civilian protection and human rights.
2. Previous uses of emergency authority, such as for Ukraine in 2022 and for Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Jordan in 2019, were conducted under different circumstances and with varying degrees of support and controversy.

Relevant Policies and Concerns:

• The U.S. Department of Defense's Civilian Harm Mitigation and Response Action Plan (CHMR-AP) and the U.S. State Department's Civilian Harm Incident Response Guidance aim to prevent U.S. complicity in civilian harm.
• The Conventional Arms Transfer (CAT) policy requires considering the risk of human rights violations before approving arms transfers.
• Israel's military offensive in Gaza has raised concerns about civilian harm, with reports suggesting that American-made weapons have been implicated in civilian casualties.​

Policy Recommendations:

• The administration should adhere to its policies, reviewing arms transfers prior to approval and investigating any reported incidents involving U.S. weapons.
• Congress should preserve oversight over weapons transfers and consider amendments requiring reporting on compliance with U.S. and international law and protection of civilians.​

Conclusion:

• The high civilian death toll in Gaza warrants more scrutiny for arms transfers to Israel, and policymakers should ensure compliance with civilian harm mitigation policies.

This is a brief overview of the article from the Center for American Progress. For complete insights, we recommend reading the full article.