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US finds Israeli military units violated human rights

April 29, 2024

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US finds Israeli military units violated human rights

The State Department has determined that at least five Israeli military units were involved in gross violations of human rights, but is holding back on imposing any consequences amid discussions with the Israeli government.

The State Department said Monday that the violations are specific to Israel’s military operations among Palestinian communities in the West Bank and predate Israel’s current war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

But the State Department’s determination and response signal the challenge for the Biden administration in being a key weapons supplier and military partner to Israel amid the growing global outcry over its conduct in Palestinian territories and accusations that Israeli forces are violating international humanitarian law.

Under the federal Leahy law, the U.S. government is barred from providing weapons to foreign militaries or security units that are found to have engaged in human rights abuses or violated international humanitarian law.

State Department deputy spokesperson Vedant Patel argued Monday that the administration is in compliance with the Leahy law despite not imposing any restrictions on military assistance to Israel.

Patel said that while the State Department determined a handful of Israeli military units engaged in gross human rights violations, they are in discussions with the Israeli government to address the violations.

The State Department is reviewing information provided by the Israeli government related to a fifth Israeli military unit that, Patel said, would influence what actions the administration would impose.

“We continue to be in consultations and engagements with the government of Israel. They have submitted additional information as it pertains to that unit, and we’re continuing to have those conversations, consistent with a memorandum of understanding that we have with the Government of Israel that was entered into in 2021,” Patel said.

Patel’s remarks prompted pushback from reporters at the State Department press conference, who raised questions over Secretary of State Antony Blinken announcing he had made a determination under the Leahy law on April 19, but that the department did not address those findings for 10 days. Patel described the procedure as an “ongoing process.”

The allegations against the units come as Israel is under intense pressure and global isolation over the toll on Palestinian civilians in Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza, and that comes on top of decades of scrutiny over Israel’s multiple conflicts with Hamas in the Strip.

Read the full report at TheHill.com.

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Upcoming things we’re watching on our beat:

Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Charles Q. Brown Jr. will testify at a House Armed Services Committee hearing on “Department of Defense Fiscal Year 2025 Budget Request,” tomorrow at 10 a.m.
The House Appropriations defense subcommittee will hear from Gen. Daniel Hokanson, chief of the National Guard Bureau; Lt. Gen. Jody Daniels, chief of Army Reserve and commanding Gen. of the U.S. Army Reserve Command; Vice Adm. John Mustin, chief of Navy Reserve; Lt. Gen. Leonard Anderson, commander of Marine Forces Reserve; and Lt. Gen. John Healy, chief of Air Force Reserve, on “FY2025 Request for the National Guard and Reserves Forces,” at 10 a.m. tomorrow.
The House Appropriations defense subcommittee will also hold a hearing on “FY2025 Request for the U.S. Air Force and Space Force,” with testimony from Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall, Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David Allvin and Space Force Gen. B. Chance Saltzman, chief of space operations, tomorrow at 2 p.m.

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Colleges across the country are barreling toward crisis as pro-Palestinian student protesters show no signs of relenting, posing growing risks to the schools and threatening to become a major election-year issue.

Events in and around the defense world:

Lithuanian Minister of Defense Laurynas Kasciunas will speak at the Hudson Institute on “Northern Europe, NATO, and the War in Ukraine,” at 9 a.m.
The U.S. Institute of Peace will hold a virtual discussion on “The Trajectory of India-Russia Ties Amid the War in Ukraine,” with former Indian deputy national security adviser Pankaj Saran, at 9:30 a.m.
A Senate Armed Services Subcommittee will hold a hearing on “The Department of Defense’s efforts to ensure service members’ access to safe, high-quality pharmaceuticals,” with testimony from Assistant Defense Secretary for Health Affairs Lester Martinez-Lopez, and David Smith, deputy assistant defense secretary for health readiness policy and oversight, at 2:30 p.m.
A Senate Foreign Relations subpanel will convene a hearing on “U.S. Policy on Taiwan,” with testimony from Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Daniel Kritenbrink, at 2:30 p.m.
A House Armed Services subcommittee will hold a hearing on “Fiscal Year 2025 Budget Request for Military Readiness,” with testimony from Gen. James Mingus, Army vice chief of staff; Adm. James Kilby, vice chief of naval operations; Gen. Christopher Mahoney, assistant Marine Corps commandant; Gen. James Slife, Air Force vice chief of staff; and Gen. Michael Guetlein, vice chief of space operations, at 3 p.m.
Another House Armed Services subpanel will convene a hearing on “FY25 Budget Request for Nuclear Forces and Atomic Energy Defense Activities,” at 3:30 p.m.