Biden’s Embargo Likely Caused Jewish Deaths and Delayed Israel’s Destruction of Islamic Hamas

Zionist Organization of America (ZOA) National President Morton A. Klein released the following statement:

The ZOA is deeply grateful to President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio for expediting $4 billion in military assistance and sales to Israel, and for reversing the Biden administration’s unconscionable, dangerous to Jews, hostile-to-Israel partial arms embargo on America’s closest ally, the Jewish State of Israel. This assistance is especially timely, given Arab-Islamist Hamas’ refusal to release the remaining hostages.

Biden’s partial embargo – including withholding arms and equipment that Israel had already paid for! – was a betrayal of the Jewish people that hampered Israel’s efforts to defend her people and existence against the Israel/America-hating Islamic Republic of Iran and its proxies’ multi-front genocidal war against the Jewish State of Israel. The Israel Security Assistance Act, passed by the House in May 2024, opposed Biden’s embargo. Biden’s partial embargo hardened Islamist Hamas’ negotiating positions and refusal to release hostages, and emboldened the radical Muslim twins of Hamas and Hezbollah to launch rocket barrages and other attacks against Israeli civilians. Biden’s withholding of bomb kits caused Israel to have to use leftover kits from the Yom Kippur war (52 years ago) that failed to work.

We understand that Jewish soldiers died due to weapons and bulldozer shortages created by the Biden administration! Many of these courageous boys and young men were barely out of high school or had young families. Biden’s arms embargo threats also delayed Israel from entering Rafah for months – thereby thwarting Israeli hostage rescue efforts. (See also: “ZOA Condemns Biden Administration’s Threatening Arms Embargo on Israel, Waiving Sanctions on Palestinian Terrorism and State Dept.’s Anti-Israel Press Conference,” Nov. 12, 2024 (with citations to additional ZOA articles regarding Biden’s embargoes.)

ZOA especially thanks Secretary Rubio for his following March 1 announcement of much-needed assistance and sales to Israel, which described the situation so well:

Military Assistance to Israel
Press Statement
Marco Rubio, Secretary of State 

I have signed a declaration to use emergency authorities to expedite the delivery of approximately $4 billion in military assistance to Israel. The decision to reverse the Biden administration’s partial arms embargo, which wrongly withheld a number of weapons and ammunition from Israel, is yet another sign that Israel has no greater ally in the White House than President Trump.

Since taking office, the Trump administration has approved nearly $12 billion in major FMS sales to Israel. This important decision coincides with President Trump’s repeal of a Biden-era memorandum which had imposed baseless and politicized conditions on military assistance to Israel at a time when our close ally was fighting a war of survival on multiple fronts against Iran and terror proxies.

The Trump administration will continue to use all available tools to fulfill America’s long-standing commitment to Israel’s security, including means to counter security threats.