The Washington PostDemocracy Dies in Darkness

Biden’s secrecy on arms transfers to Israel unnerves some Democrats

The administration has flooded weapons into the Gaza conflict with far less transparency than it has for the war in Ukraine

November 9, 2023 at 8:59 p.m. EST
Iron Dome air defenses intercept a rocket fired from the Gaza Strip toward central Israel in late October. (Oded Balilty/AP)
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President Biden faces growing pressure from allies in Congress to publicly disclose the scope of U.S. arms being funneled to Israel, as the enormous civilian death toll in Gaza draws international condemnation and increasingly unsettles Democrats.

Contrary to its military aid program for Ukraine, which saw the Pentagon release recurring fact sheets about the volume of U.S. arms transfers, the administration has not made public the quantities of weapons it is sending to Israel. The administration is also pushing for the authority to bypass notification requirements to Congress that apply to every other country receiving military financing.