Written by Whitney Webb; Originally appeared at Mint Press
The massive funding for Israel’s military is the result of the 2016 U.S.-Israel Memorandum of Understanding on security assistance between the Israeli and U.S. governments, which called for annual funding of $3.8 billion — or $23,000 per year for every Jewish family living in Israel — for the next 10 years.
US President Donald Trump (r) meets with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the Oval Office of the White House, March 5, 2018, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
In an event largely overlooked by the U.S. media, the Senate passed a bill on Wednesday that would provide Israel with $3.3 billion in military aid along with over $500 million for missile defense over the course of the next year. The bill, officially titled the “United States-Israel Security Assistance Authorization Act of 2018,” is expected to be voted on by the House within the week. If approved and signed into law by President Trump, it would represent the “single largest military aid package in American history.”
The massive amount of funding being allocated to Israel’s military is ultimately the result of the 2016 U.S.-Israel Memorandum of Understanding on security assistance between the Israeli and U.S. governments, which called for $3.8 billion in funding for Israel on an annual basis over the next ten years.
Though this startling figure — which translates into $23,000 for every Jewish family living in Israel — was supposed to be the limit for U.S. military aid to Israel, the figure is actually set to be higher this year, given Congress’ recent passage of a massive $716 billion defense bill that provides an additional $550 million in U.S. aid for Israeli missile defense systems. The defense bill also authorizes an additional $1 billion for U.S. weapons stockpiles in Israel.
Over the past several years, U.S. military aid to Israel has ballooned, with U.S. funding of Israeli missile defense alone quadrupling since 2009. Ironically, many of those missile defense systems, besides being clumsy and costly, frequently malfunction, including the “Iron Dome” defense system — jointly developed by Raytheon and Israeli defense company Rafael — and the “Arrow-3” system — jointly developed by Israel Aerospace Industries and Boeing.
“Largest aid package ever” to be given to Israel despite jarring human-rights abuses
The massive amount of aid the U.S. government is set to give to Israel comes during Israel’s unprecedented crackdown on unarmed protesters and a looming Israeli military operation aimed at “conquering” the Palestinian enclave. Indeed, since March 30, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) — the very forces set to receive billions in U.S. taxpayer funding — have killed 164 Palestinians, including 26 children as well as journalists and medics.
In addition, over that same time frame, the IDF has injured upwards of 17,000 Palestinians living in Gaza, over half of whom had to be hospitalized for their injuries — including more than 1,400 children. All of those killed and injured were unarmed. In contrast, there has been a single Israeli death and nine Israeli injuries over that same time period.
Such grave violations of human rights would normally prevent the U.S. government from providing aid to Israel, given that the Leahy Laws enable the U.S. to withhold military assistance from units and individuals in foreign security forces if they have committed a gross violation of human rights (GVHR). GVHR offenses include: extrajudicial killings; torture or cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment; prolonged detention without charges and trial; causing the disappearance of persons by the abduction and clandestine detention of those persons; and other flagrant denials of the right to life, liberty, or the security of person.
However, given that Israel has been engaged in gross violations of human rights since its founding in 1948, and yet has received over $133 billion in aid from the U.S. during that time, the U.S. government has made it clear time and again that it is willing to bend the rules when it comes to Israel.
Top Photo | Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delivers his speech as U.S. ambassador to Israel David Friedman listen, during the opening ceremony of the new U.S. embassy in Jerusalem, May 14, 2018. Sebastian Scheiner | AP
Whitney Webb is a staff writer for MintPress News and a contributor to Ben Swann’s Truth in Media. Her work has appeared on Global Research, the Ron Paul Institute and 21st Century Wire, among others. She has also made radio and TV appearances on RT and Sputnik. She currently lives with her family in southern Chile.
Trump is feeding the murdering government while they bomb and kill and destroy Arab property. This demonstrates the Zionists who control Washington also control Trump. This is why he keeps threatening Iran. This is ashocking fact of the problems in the mid east. This assures us that the US will attack Iran. Would Russia and China abandon their ally Iran? If the US is allowed to destroy Iran as it did to Afganistan, Tunesia, Lybia, Iraq and Syria, they will move along to other countries to destroy.
Iran is not going to be as Afghan Taliban, or Iraqi Al-Qaeda or the bad army that just surrenders itself to the Americans in 1991. The Americans should understand that they will go against another sovereign state, that has Army, Air Defense, Cruise Missiles, Ballistic Missiles and many many more things. The US was never in war, they are just bosting sides and funding side to kill each other, does that is West or East or North or South of the country that are in and doing that shit. Who will go and fight Iran today, that must be american soldiers and they will surely die with a bigger number than 2003-2007 Iraqi Al-Qaeda did. And Iraq will stand aside with Iran, Syria will too, Lebanon not to say, if we calculate the Russians well that’s whole different story. But it’s all Trump’s barking as usual no one will attack Iran.
“But it’s all Trump’s barking as usual no one will attack Iran.”
I hope you’re right. Israel has been able to wag the US dog for a long time. It’s Israeli first citizens in the Congress combined with the deep pockets of it’s lobbies and it’s Zionist neocon stink tanks is the reason I state “I hope”. Iraq was destroyed as has been Syria at the behest of Israel and Israel’s bellicosity towards Iran is at fever pitch along with the morons in Washington.
Okay, if we put the illuminate theory aside, what does USA benefit from all that tax payer money sent to Israel? I really don’t get it..
Short answer: Empire
IsrahellI empire,US is going bankrupt because of the parasite,warmongering fake Jews that control it.
“Pretend Empire” in their useless dumb fuck minds.
This is essentially the same question as, “What benefit does the USA get from all that taxpayer money the neocons (Deep State) are eager to and insist on spending on various wars?”
Social justice chickenhawk neocon factions will squawk about right/duty to protect and a warped foreign-policy goal of legally – in their consideration – assassinating leaders we don’t like and spreading the corrupt western-style democracy love (=cancer). That’s the politically correct U.S. Super-hero cover story generally used by most politicians for protecting poor, persecuted Israel from those evil Arabs.
Neocons originate from and are inherently Zionist, so they leverage their widespread U.S. government (including intelligence, justice and law enforcement) influence to constantly push their agenda and attack critics. The pure Zionist intent is simply to preserve Israel no matter what by guaranteeing it as the dominant, eternal regional power, and creating/preserving weak, chaotic U.S. vassal-state Arab neighbors. Zionists need absolutely no U.S. moral justification OR benefit to U.S. taxpayers. To them, Israel simply must exist no matter how much inhumanity, slaughter or land theft is required, and the U.S. taxpayers must finance Israel’s defense.
Naturally, if they stated it that way, U.S. citizens would riot. Those motives are always carefully cloaked by employing some variation of the cover story mentioned above. The MSM makes sure it always appears that way to the unwashed masses, and they have been successful (until recently) with their brainwashing. U.S. citizens approving this tax give-away have only the vaguest of humanitarian/Super-hero justifications of why it should be done. Any critics of this theft and favoritism – either politicians or their constituency – are automatically anti-Semites, and soon-to-be criminal anti-Semites. (Don’t ask what a Semite is – the laws are nebulous on that definition on purpose)
The US and our planet need to be dejudified. Israel and Judaism should be outlawed and eliminated.
“Some 80.8 percent of Americans oppose the $38 billion in “aid” that the Jewish lobby-controlled U.S. Government last week pledged to Israel, an IRmep poll fielded by Google Consumer Surveys has found.
At the same time, the Jewish lobby will pour money into campaign funds of politicians who support this “aid” package, while the controlled media will demonize any candidate for office who dares to oppose it.”
– 81% of Americans Oppose “Aid” to Israel –
http://newobserveronline.com/81-americans-oppose-aid-israel/
https://img.4plebs.org/boards/pol/image/1503/33/1503338607017.jpg
https://davidduke.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/CNNJewMeme-e1499356599174.jpg
While Americans are struggling with rising unemployment, cost of living,crumbling infrastructure, homelessness, due to lack of funding, it’s amazing how they can find plenty of money for israhells and it’s war budget.Unbelievable.
Nobody talks about in Washington, nobody dares to talk about it in Washington. To do so would inflict the wrath of the Jewish lobby, in which case one could kiss one’s re-election goodbye. And in the MSM to talk about it is an open invitation to be called an anti-semite. So these bills get proposed, the media ignores it or packages in ‘for the greater glory and good for US-Israeli relations’ and like good loyal senators and congressmen nobody opposes them.
Israel is the only country which can flaunt ALL laws especially international laws and human rights. It is the only country which can openly establish a gulag in a land whose lands it covets using the inhabitants for target practice. It is the only country which has gotten away with blatant murder of US service men and attempted sinking of their ship (USS Liberty).
To sum it all up…. Israel is a country which learned well from the Nazis of WW2 how to satisfy their greed while behaving in conduct similar to that of the Nazis. It is a testament to what propaganda aimed at a mindless religious grouping of adherents can accomplish when it’s collective uses it’s control of wealth to target the individuals, which form the government of the US, in order to control the actions of the US government; i.e. in terrorizing not only the Semitic people of Palestine, but the populations of it’s neighbors in the region. It is no wonder then that it has been able to acquire nukes without the usual bs spouted by the US government, attacked the USS LIberty without repercussion, imprisoned a large population in a gulag which it uses for target practice, and has always managed to steal money from the American people for it’s own greedy intentions, while the US government always claims it has no money for the needs of it’s own peoples. The propaganda is so thick in the air in the US that while Congress critters keep Americans fighting amongst themselves for the crumbs left on the table, Israel and the Deep State, of which the military industrial complex is but a part, go on laughing all the way to the bank and their next profitable wars. Ironic then that the non-Semitic people of Israel can affix a label of anti-semitism to those who oppose it’s terrorist activity against the true Semitic people of Palestine.
Propaganda works and there’s always plenty of money to support it!!!
Not only Israel, the Croatians learned well from their Nazi godfathers.
Learned?
It’s just the same https://mounadil.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/thesecretcontacts-zionismandnazigermany1933-1941-journal-of-palestine-studies-polkehn-klaus-vol-5-no-3-4-1976-pp-54-82_text-1.pdf
Watch the documentary The flat, study Mildenstein, the Ha‘avara, the thousands of connections … all the same coin.
I only wish it was unbelievable. As most Americans know, there is nothing the people of the US can do. Most are captive to their own delusions that their gov is actually elected by them. Sooner or later, as the situation becomes more dire, the slogans and Islamophobia will no longer be believable as the cause of our predicament. The bad part is that the world will be in utter chaos by the time that happens. Which, of course is the plan. The cabal believes that through the coming chaos, that they will be in control of all resources. Israel is no more than a sick blood engorged tick and the US is the tick fever infected host. Death is the prognosis, as recovery from such an infection is rare.
Zman i missed u bro lol how u doin
Doing fine…and you?
am doing ok, thank you :))
Btw, I like the ‘Assad must stay’…looks like even the ZIOs have come around to your way of thinking…LOL. Yeah, I’ve not been around a lot lately…family deaths (my mother and my wife…and BF since 4 YO has stage 4 lung cancer) and the ensuing general aggravations have kept me occupied. Good to see you!
oh my goodness, i am so sorry!! you will be in my prayers from now on. but i know you have the strength to carry on :))
Thank you! I have gotten back on my feet so to speak. It was a trying time. Cared for mother for 14 years, nearly broke us. Her passing was expected and was very fast, Then wife diagnosed with type of pulmonary fibrosis, medical community useless. Meds were poisons that did nothing except make her worse. Very difficult to deal with. Doctors are lucky to be alive. Got good news the other day, BF cancer is showing to be in remission, if they are to be believed. We will all die…it’s the how and why that’s trying. Anyway, thanks for the prayers…I hope you and yours are and stay well.
thank you, i will keep you and your family in my prayers :))) im glad you have recovered :)) also assad’s wife, asma, she was recently diagnosed with breast cancer, have to pray for her too
The unemployment is not rising, their debt definitely, but inspite of that, what difference do make 4 or 5 billions in comparison to their 714.000.000.000$ spending for the military. By the way no one knows how high their full military related costs are, may be up to 1.4 trillion.
Yes the fiction of lower unemployment is working here. Trumps ratings are up (supposedly) and the sheeple continue to believe it all…including the self defeating lies that we cannot afford infrastructure upkeep, healthcare and social security. But we can sure afford to keep feeding the Israeli leech and the MIC gluttons. When it becomes apparent that this is the same old line of $hit, we’ll look for another ‘saviour’ to fool us. We are soooo screwed.
The only military aid that Israel and the World needs is a bloody big bomb, on everywhere except the
Jerusalem .. The World is sick of the scum.
this is where your taxes are going US citizens.
forget schools and hospitals, arming Israel is much more important.
Turkey joining BRICS could be ‘serious shock’ for US & EU, analyst
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=tYSSS2ZJzWQ
Dump the dollar and rescue your national economy: Turkey, Iran, Pakistan, China & Russia have banned US dollar. All the SCO and BRICS member states will trade in their own currency. They are not using US dollar any more.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=h-eBFpVC3lc
Turkey And Iran Ditch The Dollar, Putin Smiles And Trump Cries. World tired of funding US military.
This is the reality.
Trump pressurize allies because he wants to rescue US economy from collapse.
Trump will reduce military budget, will dismantle military bases in foreign countries and will stop funding for terrorists like ISIS, Israel, PKK etc to rescue American economy from collapse.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=TV01S_haL0g
The US Economy Collapse Warning! US$70 Trillion Dark Cloud Of Debt – Stock Market Crash 2018.
Trump hasen’t done a thing except tweet and tweeter,first the huge cuts for the corporations, then the cutting of regulations on wall street and the banking sector,still in Africa the Mid-East and stirring up more trouble in South America and toss in the Ukraine, and of course Trumps pressure on our so called allies is nothing more then selling them more weapons for more wars,get thru your head he nothing more than a neocon….
“Trump will reduce military budget, will dismantle military bases in
foreign countries and will stop funding for terrorists like ISIS,
Israel, PKK etc to rescue American economy from collapse.”…you’re kidding, right? The Trumpet just approved the biggest increase in military spending ever. He is doing the every same thing GW did…more war and Israeli aid while cutting taxes. How do you think this country got into the condition it’s in? Real conservative economics there. Trump is the same old leach as the rest of the lying criminals. Looking at fiscal policy for the last 38 years tells me the collapse of the US is the goal. The host cannot live after all the blood has been sucked from it.
Trump cannot give cash money to any body due to US economic collapse…. He just gets rid of from his junk fighters F-35 and ammunition to give it to Israel which US will never ever use as a front line fighter.
The NAZI’S are here again with with their prime buddy Goebbels propaganda master of the universe.
They don’t want hear about laws and reasons and consequences. They want to hear about their own narrow extremely perverse sense of “justice”. They want to hear about you losing and them winning. Anything less will be unacceptable.
We should give Aids to israel, not aid.
USA FUNDING THE DEVIL STATE of FAKE ISRAEL
The beast and the harlot.
Israels achilles heel. They are foolish to make themselves so dependent on foreign subsidy. Will eventually end and then their economy will strangle under their militarism.
What is ironically about the fact that these us-funded missilesystems are jointventures of american-israeli defensecompanies?
Disgusting and WRONG!
Americunts love it. Do they not? Otherwise things would have turned up differently .
Not all of us love it. We have been propagandized for so long most ppl cannt see the truth. Those of us that see the truth are actually powerless.
“overlooked by the media”…..disgusting.