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U.S. Paused Shipment of Thousands of Bombs to Israel amid Rafah Rift
(Washington Post) John Hudson - The Biden administration paused the shipment of thousands of weapons to Israel amid mounting concern about its plan to expand a military operation in southern Gaza, U.S. officials said Tuesday. The disclosure marks the first known instance of a pause in U.S. arms transfers since the Oct. 7 Hamas-led attack into Israel that killed more than 1,200 people. A U.S. official described the move as a "shot across the bow," intended to underscore to Israeli leaders the seriousness of U.S. concerns about the offensive in Rafah. The shipment being prepared for delivery to Israel last week included 1,800 2,000-pound bombs and 1,700 500-pound bombs, the officials said. The Biden administration is reviewing other planned transfers including 6,500 Joint Direct Attack Munitions, which convert free-fall bombs into precision-guided weapons. Despite the pause, the Israeli military has enough weapons to conduct the Rafah operation if it chooses. None of the pauses apply to the billions of dollars in additional Israel aid passed by Congress last month.