Biden Halts Weapons Shipment To Israel Over Rafah Concerns But Arms Worth Billions Still In Pipeline

America suspended a shipment of heavy, bunker-busting bombs to Israel, weapons Israel had used in its war against Hamas. On May 8, US President Joe Biden publicly warned Israel for the first time that the US would withhold arms supplies. The White House was concerned the IDF* could use them in densely populated Rafah where over one million civilians had sought refuge. The suspended arms delivery to Israel consisted of 1,800 2,000-pound (907 kg) bombs and 1,700 500-pound bombs, according to US officials. The decision arose from concerns about the "end-use of the 2,000-pound bombs in dense urban settings like Rafah," said a US official.