WASHINGTON - A State Department report says U.S. weapons might have been used in violating humanitarian law, but does not make a specific enough finding to trigger punitive action against Israel.
The U.N. General Assembly adopts a resolution in support of Palestinian statehood.
More than 100,000 have fled Rafah, the U.N. says, as Israeli bombardment intensifies.
Actions by Israel and Egypt are restricting Gaza aid routes.
People leaving Rafah describe yet another fearful flight from Israeli assaults.
U.N. officials warn that aid efforts face imminent threat from lack of fuel and food.
UNRWA says it closed its headquarters in East Jerusalem after attacks and a fire.
An American aid ship heads toward Gaza, but the system for unloading it still isn’t in place.
The Biden administration has concluded it is “reasonable to assess” that Israel’s military campaign in Gaza has violated international law, but has not found specific instances that would justify the withholding of military aid, the State Department told Congress on Friday.
In the administration’s most detailed assessment of Israel’s conduct in Gaza, the State Department said in a written report to Congress that Israel “has the knowledge, experience and tools to implement best practices for mitigating civilian harm in its military operations.”
But it added that “the results on the ground, including high levels of civilian casualties, raise substantial questions” as to whether the Israel Defense Forces are using them sufficiently.
The report also noted that “Israel has not shared complete information to verify” whether U.S. weapons have been used in specific incidents alleged to have involved human rights law violations.
Nevertheless, the report, mandated by President Biden, deems that assurances Israel provided in March that it would use U.S. arms consistent with international law are “credible and reliable” and thus allow the continued flow of U.S. military aid.
The report said that conclusion was based in part on the difficulty of collecting reliable information from the war zone and the way Hamas operates in densely populated areas. It also stressed that Israel has begun the process of seeking accountability for possible violations of the law, a key component in the U.S. assessment about whether to provide military aid to allies accused of human rights violations.
The report also did not find that Israel had intentionally obstructed humanitarian aid into Gaza.
The conclusions are unrelated to Mr. Biden’s recent decision to delay the delivery to Israel of 3,500 bombs and his review of other weapons shipments. Mr. Biden has said those actions were in response to Israel’s stated plans to invade the southern Gaza city of Rafah.
The findings are sure to further anger a vocal minority of Democrats in Congress who have grown increasingly critical of Israel’s conduct in Gaza. They argue that Israel has indiscriminately killed civilians with American arms and intentionally hindered U.S.-supplied humanitarian aid.
Either would violate U.S. laws governing arms transfers to foreign militaries, as well as international humanitarian law, which is largely based on the Geneva Conventions.
Critics of Mr. Biden’s continuation of most military support to Israel had hoped that he would use the report as a catalyst for further restricting arms deliveries to the country. The U.S. provides Israel with $3.8 billion in annual military aid, and Congress last month approved an additional $14 billion in emergency funding.
Mr. Biden ordered the report in February with a national security memorandum, known as NSM-20. It required all recipients of U.S. military aid engaged in conflict — to provide the United States with written “assurances” that they will comply with international law and not hinder the delivery of humanitarian aid either provided by or supported by the U.S. government.
The report called on the secretary of state and the defense secretary to assess “any credible reports or allegations” that American weapons might have been used in violation of international law.
Since the president’s memorandum was issued, an independent task force formed in response issued a lengthy report citing dozens of examples of likely Israeli legal violations. That report found what it called Israel’s “systematic disregard for fundamental principles of international law,” including “attacks launched despite foreseeably disproportionate harm to civilians” in densely populated areas.
