David Israel
27 Shevat 5785 – February 25, 2025
The Trump administration last Friday rescinded a Biden-era regulation that ensured that allies such as Israel won’t use US-made weapons in violation of “international humanitarian law,” which was understood as Israel’s obligation to truck tons of goods into the Gaza Strip, to be acquired and sold by Hamas, The Washington Post reported, citing current and former officials.
The February 08, 2024, National Security Memorandum on Safeguards and Accountability with Respect to Transferred Defense Articles and Defense Services, required allies of the US using American-made weapons and ammunition to submit “credible and reliable written assurances from foreign governments receiving defense articles,” and ordered the State dept. and the Dept. of Defense to ensure that all transfers of defense articles and defense services are conducted in a manner consistent with all applicable international and domestic law and policy, including international humanitarian law and international human rights law, in line with the “Leahy Law.”
Named after its principal sponsor, Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vermont), a vehement anti-Israel lawmaker, the Leahy Law prohibits the US from providing military assistance to foreign security force units that violate human rights “with impunity.”
The Post suggested that the repeal of the February 2024 directive—originally imposed by President Joe Biden as his administration sought to balance support for Israel’s war against Hamas with concerns over civilian casualties—marks President Donald Trump’s effort to reassert his “America First” approach to US foreign policy.
Supporters of the Biden memo argued it was a way to pressure Israel into facilitating humanitarian aid deliveries in Gaza, an ongoing issue since the war erupted following Hamas’s atrocities of October 7, 2023. However, critics contended that the Biden administration failed to effectively use the policy to improve the situation for civilians in Gaza.
In late April 2024, House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul (R-TX) and Senate Foreign Relations Committee Ranking Member Jim Risch (R-ID) sent a letter to President Biden and Secretary Blinken, urging the repeal of the memorandum. They argued that the directive imposed redundant bureaucratic requirements that hindered America’s ability to provide security assistance to Israel.
“This NSM is a redundant requirement that adds unnecessary bureaucracy and contributes to frustration from the partners and allies that count on U.S. security assistance,” the lawmakers wrote. “In addition, the timing of its release makes clear that its aim is to placate critics of security assistance to our vital ally Israel. Moreover, its vague language leaves open the possibility for Executive overreach that would have serious negative consequences for our national security…We urge you to revoke NSM-20, abide by the robust and vital human rights safeguards already codified in U.S. security assistance law, and continue to support our critical partners around the world.”
Still, even without Biden’s directive, other established norms still link the provision of US weapons to human rights and humanitarian concerns, such as the Foreign Assistance Act and the Arms Export Control Act.
But not for the next four years, thank God.
Content retrieved from: https://www.jewishpress.com/news/us-news/trump-revokes-bidens-policy-tying-us-arms-sales-to-humanitarian-aid/2025/02/25/.
About The Author
