Just a week ago Israeli officials confirmed that President Obama had offered a $40 billion proposal to cover the next 10 years, but that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu refused to accept it, seeking more.
Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, center, eats fruit during the weekly cabinet meeting, in Jerusalem, Sunday, Jan. 24, 2016. (Abir Sultan/Pool Photo via AP)
83 US Senators have signed a letter today demanding that President Obama quickly reach a new military aid deal with Israel, and one that is worth considerably more than the $3 billion annually that Israel is already receiving. The letter claimed Israel needs more money to “defend itself.”
The demand seems particularly ill-timed, however, as just a week ago Israeli officials confirmed that President Obama had offered a $40 billion proposal to cover the next 10 years, but that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu refused to accept it because it sought a pledge not to lobby Congress for more money over that 10 year period.
The Obama Administration had also reportedly offered an alternative, $34 billion deal, which would allow Netanyahu to keep lobbying Congress for annual hikes in funding, though Netanyahu was said not to have liked this offer any better.
There is a major split in Israel over the matter, with some in Netanyahu’s government believing that they could get more money by waiting for 2017 and Obama’s successor. Some Israeli officials, however, fear that spurning Obama’s offer risks a deeper divide between Israel’s far-right government and the Democratic Party in the US, particularly if Netanyahu rejects Obama’s deal and takes one from a Republican.
Copyright © Antiwar.com 2016
With neither its farmers nor fishermen safe from Saudi coalition attacks, famine has become a massive crisis in Yemen, further exacerbated by the coalition’s blockade of the country which largely prevents food from being imported into the troubled nation.
Exposing the groups behind CNN’s firing of Marc Lamont Hill, and the Israel lobby groups trying to get him fired from Temple University.
Why there’s nothing to celebrate in Bernie Sanders “Yemen Bill” aimed at ending the US involvement in Yemen. Here’s the loophole that allows for continued US involvement in Yemen.
Mnar Muhawesh discusses social media giants’ efforts to wipe independent journalism off the map and what can be done to combat this deliberate form of censorship.
