According to Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), the Biden administration’s efforts to withhold weapons from Israel to deter a ground invasion into Rafah—the southernmost part of the Gaza Strip where Hamas strongholds still stand—may actually result in more civilian casualties rather than fewer.
“The very weapons he’s purposefully revoking are kits to convert bombs into precision-guided ammunition,” Ernst wrote in an article for Fox News. “Preventing these weapons from reaching Israeli hands only contradicts the Biden administration’s self-professed goal, which is to push Israel to conduct precise strikes against Hamas to reduce civilian casualties.”
Ernst recounts that during a trip last week to the Jewish state, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu explained to her that “the U.S. withholding precision-guided capabilities from Israel won’t stop their efforts to defend their country and their citizens. But the reality is, Biden’s decision could make it harder for Israel to avoid civilian deaths.”
Calling the Middle East “on fire because of Biden’s feeble ‘leadership,’” Ernst wrote that she was unsurprised “by Biden’s abrogation of his moral duty to support Israel.” She added that“this president has repeatedly demonstrated that he prefers to appease our enemies rather than help our allies.”
Concluding her op-ed, Ernst dismissed the oft-repeated claim from Biden and his officials that the administration’s support for Israel was “ironclad,” writing: “That’s clearly a bunch of bull.”