Confidential USAID documents report that Israel is in violation of a White House directive requiring recipients of American military assistance to comply with international humanitarian law and permit the unimpeded delivery of U.S.-funded humanitarian support.
The report comes after U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken was instructed to “obtain credible and reliable written assurances” from U.S. weapons recipients that they will abide by international humanitarian law, and report those findings to the White House and Congress. In Israel’s case, it would only apply to offensive weapons.
USAID told Blinken that “the government of Israel (GOI) does not currently demonstrate necessary compliance with the transport of delivery of United States humanitarian assistance,” or co-operate with US-backed humanitarian efforts from other countries.
According to the report, USAID also has “serious concerns that the killing of nearly 32,000 people, of which the GOI itself assesses roughly two-thirds are civilians, may well amount to a violation of the international humanitarian law.”
Another section of the report accused Israel of the killing of 240 humanitarian aid workers, and declared that a sustained famine and health crisis would become inevitable if Israel invaded Rafah.
The paper was cleared by 10 USAID officials, although the agency's director did not formally commit to it. Both the State Department and Israel's Foreign Ministry have rejected it's findings.