State Department and USAID leaks confirm Israel is blocking U.S. aid to Gaza, triggering requirement for suspension of military aid
(Washington, DC – April 27, 2024): The U.S. State Department should immediately invoke Section 620I of the Foreign Assistance Act and suspend all military assistance to Israel in light of extensive evidence, including a leaked State Department memo, documenting the Israeli government's blocking of U.S. humanitarian aid to Gaza, DAWN said today.
Three recent reports, including the leaked internal State Department memorandum, an internal assessment by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), and the report of the Independent Task Force on the Application of National Security Memorandum-20 to Israel (the "Task Force"), conclusively confirm that Israel's conduct impeding and blocking humanitarian aid has triggered the legal requirement to halt military aid.
"The State Department's leaked confirmation that Israel has restricted the transport and delivery of U.S. humanitarian assistance leaves no doubt: U.S. law requires the suspension of military aid to Israel," said Sarah Leah Whitson, DAWN's executive director. "For too long, the Biden administration has breached or ignored U.S. laws that require the suspension of aid to an abusive regime like Israel, fueling Israeli belligerence and rewarding its atrocities. It's time for real consequences."
The leaked State Department memo and the USAID memo include evidence documenting how since October 2023 Israel has severely restricted the delivery of humanitarian aid funded by U.S. taxpayers into Gaza, including turning back trucks carrying essential relief such as medical supplies and food. In addition to triggering Section 620I of the Foreign Assistance Act, which prohibits military assistance to any country that restricts the transport or delivery of U.S. humanitarian assistance, these restrictions violate assurances Israel made pursuant to National Security Memorandum-20 (NSM) that it would facilitate the delivery of U.S. humanitarian aid.
The leaked State Department memo included the conclusions of four bureaus – the Democracy Human Rights & Labor; Population, Refugees and Migration; Global Criminal Justice and International Organization Affairs – that they do not find "credible or reliable" Israel's assurances that it is using U.S.weapons in accordance with international humanitarian law. With respect to humanitarian aid, Reuters reports, "the assessment from the four bureaus also cited 11 instances of Israeli military actions the officials said 'arbitrarily restrict humanitarian aid,' including rejecting entire trucks of aid due to a single 'dual-use' item, 'artificial' limitations on inspections as well as repeated attacks on humanitarian sites that should not be hit."
The leaked State Department memo reportedly included concerns from the Bureau of Political-Military Affairs, headed by Jessica Lewis, that enforcing U.S. law requiring the suspension of aid against Israel would "require Washington to re-evaluate all ongoing and future sales to other countries in the region."
Section 620I and National Security Memorandum-20
Section 620I of the Foreign Assistance Act, enacted in 1996, aims to ensure U.S. humanitarian aid reaches its intended beneficiaries and to safeguard U.S. taxpayer dollars. The law requires a suspension of military assistance, including military assistance, to any country that restricts U.S. humanitarian assistance, even indirectly. No presidential waiver is available. Under National Security Memorandum-20, entitled "National Security Memorandum on Safeguards and Accountability With Respect to Transferred Defense Articles and Defense Services" (NSM-20), Israel was required to provide assurances that it would not violate international humanitarian law, including restricting humanitarian assistance; it provided such assurances to the U.S. on March 25. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is required to formally report to Congress by May 8 whether Israel has complied with these assurances.
The leaked State Department memo's findings echo those of the Independent Task Force on the Application of National Security Memorandum-20 to Israel, a group of international law and policy experts, which submitted a report to the State Department last week documenting Israel's violations of Section 620I. The Task Force found that Israel's total siege of Gaza starting in October 2023 and its turning back of aid convoys and trucks carrying U.S.-funded relief supplies constitute prohibited restrictions under 620I, and should therefore trigger an immediate suspension of military aid.
USAID reached a similar conclusion in a leaked internal memorandum addressed to Secretary Blinken, finding that Israel "does not currently demonstrate necessary compliance" with the memo's requirement that it facilitate and not impede "the transport of delivery of United States humanitarian assistance" as well as U.S.-backed international efforts to provide relief.
"Section 620I has been rendered toothless by State Department inaction and special treatment for Israel," said Raed Jarrar, DAWN's advocacy director. "Today's leak should mark a final end to this impunity. President Biden has no choice but to fully enforce the law and halt aid to Israel."
The Task Force is urging the State Department to conduct a comprehensive review of Israel's compliance with 620I and the humanitarian access provisions of National Security Memorandum-20 throughout its current Gaza offensive. However, based on the findings released today alone, an immediate suspension of military assistance is already required by law.
"From bombing residential towers to blocking food and medicine, Israel's war on Gaza has been marked by utter disregard for civilian life and international law," said Jarrar. "Suspending military aid is the bare minimum the U.S. must do to avoid further complicity in these abuses. But it's an essential first step to show that even Israel is not above the law."
