Hamas Criticizes US for Continuing to Provide Military Support to Israel

Gaza, MINA – The Palestinian resistance group Hamas on Saturday criticized the United States (US) for continuing to provide military support to Israel in connection with a new arms deal between the two allies.

“The US decision to agree to a massive arms deal with the Zionist entity (Israel) encourages the occupation and continued aggression against our people and their holy land,” Hamas spokesman Hazem Qassem said in a statement as quoted from Anadolu Agency.

Qassem said the US risks becoming an accomplice in Israel’s aggression against Palestine by continuing to support it “with weapons, money and political protection to carry out the occupation policy.”

He noted such an approach by the US makes Israel brave to rebel against international law and resolutions and continues to increase tensions in the region.

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The US State Department said in a statement on Friday that it approved the sale of 18 Sikorsky CH-53K heavy transport helicopters to Israel as part of a $3.4 billion deal.

The agreement reaffirms the US commitment to Israel’s security, the statement said.

“It is in the national interest of the United States to help Israel develop and maintain a strong and prepared self-defense capability,” the statement added.

In May, the Washington Post reported that the Biden administration had approved a $735 million arms sale to Israel when Tel Aviv carried out its assault on the Gaza Strip.

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The move sparked opposition among some members of US President Joe Biden’s Democratic Party, including Congressman Ilhan Omar who described the deal as “terrible” if implemented.

“If this (arms deal) goes through, it will be seen as a green light for further escalation and will undermine efforts to broker a ceasefire,” Omar said at a time when Israel’s 11-day war on Gaza was underway.

At least 260 Palestinians were killed and thousands more injured in 11 days of Israeli airstrikes on the Gaza Strip in early May. The war was sparked by an Israeli court decision to expel Palestinian families from their homes in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood of occupied East Jerusalem. (T/RE1)

Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)

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