US 'moving forward' with 500-pound bombs for Israel

The United States is "moving forward" with sending 500-pound bombs to Israel after a pause over concerns that 2,000-pound munitions in the same shipment could be used in populated areas, a US official said Thursday.

Washington halted the bomb shipment in early May when it appeared Israel was on the verge of a major ground operation in Rafah in southern Gaza that the US government strongly opposed, with Israel eventually launching a more limited incursion instead.

"We've been clear that our concern has been on the end-use of the 2,000-pound bombs, particularly in advance of Israel's Rafah campaign which they have announced they are concluding," the US official said on condition of anonymity.

"Because of how these shipments are put together, other munitions may sometimes be co-mingled. That's what happened here with the 500-pound bombs," the official said, adding: "Because our concern was not about the 500-pound bombs, those are moving forward as part of the usual process."

Last month, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu publicly accused President Joe Biden's administration of slowing down weapons deliveries to Israel, which has been at war in Gaza since the October 7 attack by Hamas.

US officials denied the accusations, saying that the single bomb shipment was the only one affected, with the two sides later signaling progress on resolving the rift.

Biden said during a news conference on Thursday that the 2,000-pound bombs would not be sent to Israel.

"I'm not providing the 2,000-pound bombs. They cannot be used in Gaza or any populated area without causing great human tragedy and damage," the president said.

The United States is Israel's main military backer, but the White House has voiced frustration over the rising civilian death toll in Gaza, where Israel has conducted more than nine months of operations against Hamas.

The unprecedented October 7 attack by Palestinian militants on southern Israel that triggered the war resulted in the deaths of 1,195 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli figures.

The militants also seized hostages, 116 of whom remain in Gaza, including 42 the military says are dead.

Israel's retaliatory offensive aimed at eliminating Hamas has killed at least 38,345 people, also mostly civilians, according to data from the Gaza health ministry.