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Three days after the Israel-Hamas war broke out, US President Joe Biden denounced, in a presidential address, the attacks of Hamas as “acts of sheer evil.”
“The brutality of Hamas, its bloodthirstiness, brings to mind the worst, worst rampages of ISIS (Daesh). This is terrorism,” Biden declared.
As the war wraps up its ninth day, Israel continues receiving increasing amounts of American military aid, with the Biden administration announcing that this week, the US Congress will vote on sending an additional $2bn-worth of emergency military aid, despite the fact that Israel has already received weapons worth $3.8bn this year alone.
During his visit to Tel Aviv on October 12, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken stated, “You may be strong enough on your own to defend yourself, but as long as America exists, you will never, ever have to.”
As proof, within hours of the Hamas attack, the US deployed its largest aircraft, the USS Gerald Ford, also known as the world’s largest warship, to Israeli waters.
According to the US Navy, USS Gerald Ford cost $13bn in construction and includes a new nuclear plant that has the ability to generate nearly three times the amount of electrical power compared to past models, the “Nimitz” class.
It can also withstand 25% more aircraft launches per day with 25% fewer crew members but still has a total crew of 5,000 sailors.
This deployment is monumental as it marks the first time in 50 years that a first-class US Navy supercarrier has been deployed.
The US Air Force also dispatched several aircraft squadrons to Israel, including the F-35 (dubbed the most advanced fighter jet in the world by the US Air Force), the F-15, the F-16 (previously deployed in Syria) and the A-10 fighter aircraft.
According to the American Military, C-17 fighter jets have also been dispatched to Israel, but have already departed.
Other US warships sent to the east Mediterranean include the USS Normandy, a guided missile cruiser armed with naval guns, and destroyers USS Thomas Hudner, USS Ramage, USS Carney, and USS Roosevelt.
The US military’s aid to Israel also consisted of ammunition, interceptors and other defense technology, with almost half of the funding going to the Iron Dome, which is Israel’s missile defense system.
According to AP News, American military packages will also include “small diameter bombs and JDAM kits — essentially a tail fin and navigation kit that turns a “dumb” bomb into a “smart” bomb and enables troops to guide the munition to a target, rather than simply dropping it.”
Boeing is also speeding up the delivery of 1,000 250-pound smart bombs.
Finally, as part of hostage-rescue plans, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin announced that “intelligence operations cells have been deployed to provide advice and consultations to the Israeli Defense Forces.”
America’s ongoing military aid to Israel is part of its 2016 pledge to support the Israeli military with $38bn over the course of 10 years, making it the largest military assistance package the US has ever given to a single country.
This also makes Israel the most significant recipient of US foreign aid, having received $263bn-worth of aid over the last 77 years, starting two years before Israel’s official creation.
