Israel to ask U.S. for $1 billion in emergency military aid
01 June 2021
Israel will ask the U.S. for $1 billion in additional emergency military aid this week, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C) told Fox and Friends on Tuesday and Israeli officials confirmed.
Why it matters: Israeli officials the aid is needed to replenish the Iron Dome aerial defense system and to purchase munitions for the Israeli Air Force — mainly precision-guided bombs. But several congressional Democrats have argued against providing additional weapons to Israel after at least 256 Palestinians were killed during last month's fighting in the Gaza Strip, mainly by Israeli air strikes.
- The Iron Dome system was used to intercept hundreds of rockets from Hamas during the 11 days of fighting, and Biden has already said the U.S. would replenish it.
Driving the news: Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz will arrive in Washington on Thursday for talks with Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, Gantz’s office said. The aid request will be the focus of Gantz's visit, Israeli officials say.
- While in Washington, Gantz will also discuss the Iran nuclear deal, the Gaza ceasefire and reconstruction efforts and the situation in Lebanon.
- Worth noting: The Biden administration has promised $110 million to go toward reconstruction efforts in Gaza.
What he's saying: “There is going to be a request made by the Israelis to the Pentagon on Thursday for a billion dollars in aid to replenish Iron Dome batteries. It will be a good investment for the American people. I will make sure in the Senate that they get the money," Graham told Fox a day after meeting Netanyahu and Gantz in Israel.
Flashback: In 2016, Israel and the U.S. signed an agreement for $3.8 billion in military aid to Israel over 10 years, with Israel able to ask for additional funding in case of an emergency.
Go deeper:Evictions of Palestinians could spark further conflict, Blinken tells Axios
Transcripts show George Floyd told police "I can't breathe" over 20 times
Section2Newly released transcripts of bodycam footage from the Minneapolis Police Department show that George Floyd told officers he could not breathe more than 20 times in the moments leading up to his death.
Why it matters: Floyd's killing sparked a national wave of Black Lives Matter protests and an ongoing reckoning over systemic racism in the United States. The transcripts "offer one the most thorough and dramatic accounts" before Floyd's death, The New York Times writes.
The state of play: The transcripts were released as former officer Thomas Lane seeks to have the charges that he aided in Floyd's death thrown out in court, per the Times. He is one of four officers who have been charged.
- The filings also include a 60-page transcript of an interview with Lane. He said he "felt maybe that something was going on" when asked if he believed that Floyd was having a medical emergency at the time.
What the transcripts say:
- Floyd told the officers he was claustrophobic as they tried to get him into the squad car.
- The transcripts also show Floyd saying, "Momma, I love you. Tell my kids I love them. I'm dead."
- Former officer Derek Chauvin, who had his knee on Floyd's neck for over eight minutes, told Floyd, "Then stop talking, stop yelling, it takes a heck of a lot of oxygen to talk."
Read the transcripts via DocumentCloud.