US Replenishes Israel's Arsenal With $1.9 Billion in New Weapons

[Jefferson23]

By Paul Gottinger, Reader Supported News

23 May 15

This week the U.S. State Department approved almost $1.9 billion in new weapons for Israel. The approval comes just weeks after the Israeli rights group Breaking the Silence collected reports of possible violations of international law during Israel’s 2014 “Operation Protective Edge” in Gaza.

The weapons sale includes 14,500 kits to upgrade “dumb” bombs into precision-guided munitions, over 12,000 unguided bombs, and 50 Super Penetrator “bunker buster” bombs, designed to hit targets underground.

Also approved for sale were over 3,000 hellfire missiles, which the U.S. briefly withheld from Israel following last summer’s attack on Gaza. The 50-day assault killed over 2,200 people, most of whom were civilians.

The Defense Security Cooperation Agency stated in its announcement of the arms sale that “the United States is committed to the security of Israel, and it is vital to U.S. national interests to assist Israel to develop and maintain a strong and ready self-defense capability.”

http://readersupportednews.org/news-section2/318-66/30332-focus-us-replenishes-israels-arsenal-with-19-billion-in-new-weapons

[oberliner]

1. 14,500 kits to upgrade “dumb” bombs into precision-guided munitions

That seems like a good idea. Less chance of civilian casualties.

[-none]

5. The problem here is too often civilian ARE the target.

There can be no chance of peace if we keep making and supplying bigger and better killing merchandise.
The other side will only keep up with their own in response. Have we learned nothing from MAD?

Mutual assured destruction
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mutual_assured_destruction

Apparently not.

[Erich Bloodaxe BSN]

2. Apparently we've gotten far enough away from

the IDF offing another 2200 Palestinians for replenishing the munitions used to kill them so that Israel will be ready to kill another few thousand next time to be politically awkward.

[Jefferson23]

3. As offensive as it is, their supporters are thrilled. n/t

[djean111]

4. But Congress wants to cut $700 million from Medicare in order to pay for TPP job retraining.

[-none]

6. But that involves old people. People too old to be canon fodder. Or people that were canon fodder.

So that makes it OK.