White House Responds To Netanyahu's Claim Of The U.S. Withholding Weapons From Israel

The White House on Tuesday responded to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s allegations that the Biden administration has been withholding weapons and ammunition from his country over the past few months.

“We genuinely do not know what he’s talking about,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters. “We just don’t.”

In a 49-second video posted on X, formerly Twitter, Netanyahu said he’d recently had a “candid conversation” with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, thanking him for the support the U.S. has given Israel but also airing an apparent grievance.

“It’s inconceivable that in the past few months, the administration has been withholding weapons and ammunitions to Israel,” Netanyahu said he told Blinken. “Israel ― America’s closest ally fighting for its life, fighting against Iran and our other common enemies.”

Netanyahu said Blinken provided him assurances that the Biden administration is committed to removing the “bottlenecks.”

“I certainly hope that’s the case,” Netanyahu said. “It should be the case. During World War II, [U.K. Prime Minister Winston] Churchill told the United States, ‘Give us the tools, we’ll do the job.’ And I say, give us the tools and we’ll finish the job a lot faster.”

During a joint press conference Tuesday with NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, Blinken refused to confirm whether Netanyahu was telling the truth about their alleged conversation.

“I’m not going to talk about what we said in diplomatic conversations,” Blinken said.

He did, however, note that President Joe Biden remains committed to providing Israel with “what it needs to defend itself against a whole variety of threats.”

“A big part of that, as well, is making sure that in providing that