What happened
The Biden administration said Tuesday it paused a shipment of weapons to Israel last week, as the close U.S. ally appeared set on invading Rafah in southern Gaza. Israel's "limited" incursion into Rafah on Tuesday did not cross President Joe Biden's red line against a major ground invasion in Rafah, U.S. officials said. Israel and Hamas sent delegates to Egypt to resume talks on a cease-fire in Gaza.
Who said what
The indefinitely "paused" shipment includes "1,800 2,000-pound bombs and 1,700 500-bombs bombs," a Biden administration official said. "We are especially focused on the end-use of the 2,000-pound bombs and the impact they could have in dense urban settings." Israel has used the heavy bombs "frequently" in Gaza, which experts say "has helped drive the enormous Palestinian casualty count," The Associated Press said.
Delaying weapons deliveries is a "reprehensible" betrayal, Rep. Russell Fry (R-S.C.) said. "The United States must stand with Israel. Period."
What next?
The pause in deliveries "will be felt quickly as Israel continues to rapidly expend munitions," The Washington Post said.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Did Trump just end the US-Europe alliance?Today's Big Question New US national security policy drops ‘grenade’ on Europe and should serve as ‘the mother of all wake-up calls’
-
How the War Department became the Department of Defense – and back againIn Depth In 1947 President Harry Truman restructured the US military establishment, breaking with naming tradition
-
Codeword: December 8, 2025The daily codeword puzzle from The Week
-
‘They’re nervous about playing the game’Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
Trump’s Ukraine peace talks advance amid leaked callSpeed Read Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff is set to visit Russia next week
-
Memo signals Trump review of 233k refugeesSpeed Read The memo also ordered all green card applications for the refugees to be halted
-
Pentagon targets Kelly over ‘illegal orders’ videoSpeed Read The Pentagon threatened to recall Kelly to active duty
-
Judge tosses Trump DOJ cases against Comey, JamesSpeed Read Both cases could potentially be brought again
-
US, Kyiv report progress on shifting Ukraine peace planSpeed Read The deal ‘must fully uphold Ukraine’s sovereignty,’ the countries said
-
Comey grand jury never saw final indictmentSpeed Read This ‘drove home just how slapdash’ the case is, said The New York Times
-
Summers out at Harvard, OpenAI amid Epstein furorSpeed Read Summers was part of a group being investigated by Harvard for Epstein ties
