US paused bomb shipment to Israel to signal concerns over Rafah invasion, official says

WASHINGTON — The US halted a shipment of bombs to Israel last week over concerns that Israel is nearing a decision on launching a full-scale attack on the southern Gaza city of Rafah against US wishes, a senior administration official said on Tuesday .

The shipment would consist of 1,800 2,000-pound bombs and 1,700 500-pound bombs, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive issue, with U.S. attention focused on the larger explosives and how they can be used in a dense urban environment. More than 1 million civilians are sheltering in Rafah after evacuating other parts of Gaza during Israel’s war against Hamas, which followed the militant group’s deadly attack on Israel on October 7.

President Joe Biden’s administration began assessing future transfers of military aid to Israel in April, as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government appeared to move closer to an invasion of Rafah despite months of opposition from the White House. The official said the decision to pause the shipment was made last week and that no final decision had been made on whether the shipment would continue at a later date.

The State Department is separately considering whether to approve continued transfers of Joint Direct Attack Munition kits, which place precision guidance systems on bombs, to Israel, but the review did not address upcoming shipments.