The Biden administration is delaying the sale of more than 20,000 US-made rifles to Israel over concerns about attacks by Israeli settlers on Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, two sources have said.
Reuters reports the state department sent an informal notification for the sale to Congress several weeks ago.
However, the sale has not gone ahead, despite being cleared by the leaders of the Senate foreign relations and House of Representatives foreign affairs committees in early November.
A former US official familiar with the sale said: “Other members of Congress became aware of this case, and reached out to the administration to demand they obtain assurances from Israel that the firearms will not go to settlers.
“The administration has been engaged with Israel in trying to get satisfactory assurances in that regard prior to formally notifying it. “Under the license as drafted, these firearms can also go to Israeli police units about which the Department has significant human rights concerns.”