By Tzvi Ben-Gedalyahu, The Jewish Press
October 18, 2014 — The Obama administration stopped shipping to Israel all defense items – and not just Hellfire missiles as previously reported – for a short time in the middle of the war against Hamas, reported Israel Defense’s Amir Rappaport, the well-informed and highly credibly editor of the website. Makor Rishon added to that report that the US actually cut off all communications with Israel’s Ministry of Defense purchasing offices in the US for days.
The change in policy is a major step that would wean Israel away from dependence on the United States and which also would be a significant change in the policy of buying American-made weapons with most financial assistance from the United States. American aid to countries, including Israel, usually is conditioned on a majority of the money being poured back into the American military-industrial complex.
“The Israeli defense establishment will reduce the production of weapon systems in the USA in the context of joint Israeli-American projects, and will rely more heavily on Israeli-made products” as a result of the punitive action taken by President Barack Obama, Rappaport wrote.
President Obama said during the war he was concerned about the high number of alleged civilian casualties from the Protect Edge counter-terrorist war in Gaza, and he was quoted as having warned that he his level of tolerance was approximately 1,000 deaths. A final analysis of the death toll showed that most of the 2,000 who were killed in Gaza were terrorists, and a large number of the civilians who were killed acted as human shields, either by their own will or by force.
However, it was not only the death toll that concerned senior officials in the Obama, including U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, who was labeled as “messianic” earlier this year by Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon. The ministry also is examining the possibility of using Israel-made precision guided air-to-surface munition to replace Hellfire missiles, a project that is worth hundreds of millions of dollars, if not billions.
The crisis with the Obama administration in the middle of the war was revealed first by The Wall Street Journal, which reported at the time that the Pentagon held up the transfer of Hellfire missiles that the IDF needed to replace weapons that had been deployed in the war.
The United States not only stopped shipping the missiles but also held up other requests for defense materials. Rappaport wrote that the “order to stop the processing of all Israeli requests came from a senior echelon – probably the White House, among other reasons, because Israel had ignored the initiatives of Secretary of State John Kerry and preferred to end the operation through a direct channel with the Egyptian.” He added that the State Dept. also had not forgotten and apparently has not forgiven Ya’alon for his “messianic” comment.
The Defense Minister, who is flying to the United States Saturday night for a five-day visit, went to extremes to paint a luvvy-duvvy picture of American-Israeli relations. “The United States assists Israel in a variety of areas, most prominently of course in the field of security, and we must remember that and acknowledge its leaders and thank them for this,” Ya’alon said in a press release. “The respective defense establishments in both countries have a relationship whose intimacy is unprecedented in scope and importance for Israel’s security. “There is also a close, tight relationship with my friend, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel.” He also said, “We mustn’t allow any disagreements to cast a pall over those interests and values.”
Despite the crisis that held up American shipments to the IDF during the war, cooperation between Israel and the United States continued during the war on other levels, and the United States allowed the IDF to use weapons inventories stored in Israel. The freeze of defense aid to Israel during the Protective Edge was not unprecedented. The Reagan administration held up airlifts of weapons in the First Lebanon War in 1982, and the Nixon administration did the same in the Yom Kippur War in 1973.
However, despite Ya’alon’s drooling over the Obama administration, the Obama administration’s temporary blockade on military aid was a flashing red light and siren to Israel that the time has come to become more truly independent. There is a precedent––the People of Israel did not depend on allies in their wars against enemies and supposed friends in the desert for 40 years, and the prophet and military commander Joshua led the victories in ancient Israel without foreign assistance.
The writer is a graduate in journalism and economics from The George Washington University. He has worked as a cub reporter in rural Virginia and as senior copy editor for major Canadian metropolitan dailies. Tzvi wrote for Arutz Sheva for several years before joining the Jewish Press.
@ mar55:
We will have to but our Maridos in a bottle and shake them up. TX has an over the top big noisy Texas personality. he watches Football and I go upstairs and watch my fashion shows. We kept our TV life separate.
@ honeybee:
I’m glad you are busy but well.I do not watch that program. N. love to control the TV programs and I do not like what he watches. War movies or DVD’s is not my idea of entertainment. Any program that is funny he says that it is crap. He does not enjoy fun or people and I’m all the opposite. During the week I go out with a friend who is an Assistant DA and we meet other girls who are friends and laugh a lot. I come back between 9 and 10PM and it is invigorating to take a break from all the routine.
Ignore anything that is unpleasant including words. Life is too short to fight. Happy to hear you are painting. It is relaxing. Your daughter must be beautiful. My is a very funny person. Her children are teasers. A chip off the old block. Good night!
mar55 Said:
Been painting ! Every Xmas I paint a Xmas Angel for card to send to my dearest Christian friend and neighbors. Do you ever watch “Say Yes to the Dress” about Klenfelts Bridal Shop in NY? I watch it to get inspiration for my paintings.
@ honeybee:
The real humiliation will come via the votes on election day.
First the democratic party candidates must lose in significant numbers. Whether this will happen in 2 weeks?
I don’t know, it depends on voter turnout.
@ honeybee:
HB humiliation is not enough. I want these criminals out of our country.
HB, how have you been? I miss your sugar and spicy comments. Are you OK or you have a cold or something?
mar55 Said:
Have you seen Obama’s polls, he has been humiliated.
@ mar55:
Just minutes ago a report was published on Arutz, (Chanel) #7. (Hebrew Edition). A border Policeman informs that the Islamics laugh in their faces as the BP are prohibited from actually doing even basic police work. The gruesome farce fronted by Netanyahu, puppet on a string liar, is so widespread that not longer can be faced on a delayed mode.
The “minister of police”, A’aronovich is from Lieberman’s party and his orders include those of his party boss and Netanyahu.
@ SHmuel HaLevi 2:
Senor Samuel. All these bastards are going to pay for their crimes. No one escapes Divine Justice and as we say
in Spanish: “A todo cerdo le llega su San Martin”.
It is time to change leadership but, how do you change the law that the Supreme Court would be nominated by either the people or the Knesset? I do not know of any other country where the Supreme Court can nominate themselves and vote for themselves. They are unanswerable to anyone but themselves. Obama, Kerry and all who have betrayed Israel and continue to do so will have to suffer the consequences of their actions. Almighty G-d does not forget.
I completely reject the notion of even thinking that our great ally in the US administration would do such thing.
Besides, who we are going to believe, Ya’alon, Netanyahu and don Lieberman who shrill that we are doubting Kerry our staunch ally when we should be kissing up or the rest of the normal people that know the facts?
We keep that garbage in leadership and command at our mortal risk.
And Iran is home free because the folk above also betrayed us on that.
Now one small extra detail….
How come we spend billions upon billions on defense and always end up without even ammo after a few days let alone having to send our soldiers to battle in obsolete equipment?
Where are the billions going?????