Israel's destruction in Gaza shows it doesn't need U.S. military aid
Sébastien Roblin 12 hrs ago
Joe Exotic reveals he has been diagnosed with prostate cancer
Rochester police officer fatally shoots man: What we know

This past week, the skies over Israeli cities have been lit up by more than 1,500 rockets fired by Hamas and other Palestinian militant groups in Gaza — and rippled with the traces of small explosions as Israel’s Iron Dome air defense system missiles have blown many of the crude weapons out of the sky.
a steam train on a track with smoke coming out of it © Provided by NBC News

On the other side of the wall encircling the Palestinian coastal strip, the picture is very different. While eight Israelis (all but one civilians) have been killed by the rockets that have evaded the Iron Dome, Israeli Defense Forces’ retaliatory airstrikes and artillery strikes had reportedly killed 119 Palestinians in Gaza, including 10 Hamas leaders and 31 children, and injured more than 800 as of Friday. So far, Israel’s U.S.-built F-16 jets and artillery systems have struck at least 150 targets across the impoverished enclave, home to 2 million Palestinians, and leveled three high-rise buildings with links to Hamas.

For decades, billions of dollars in American military aid to Israel has been justified as necessary to help an underdog nation stave off an array of powerful foes threatening its survival. In one memorable case, when Israeli defenses were harshly tested in 1973 by a coordinated attack from Syria and Egypt, the U.S. airlifted jet fighters and tanks to Israel to make up for its equipment losses.

But as Israel now demonstrates its ability to inflict a lopsided death count on the Palestinians, it’s time to acknowledge that this depiction of Israel no longer has any basis in reality. Instead, U.S. aid merely polishes the armor of a regional Goliath in its contests with David.

Right now, the U.S. provides $3.8 billion to Israel annually — equivalent to 20 percent of Israel’s defense budget and nearly three-fifths of U.S. foreign military financing globally. Israel’s neighbors Egypt and Jordan are the next two highest, receiving $1.3 billion and $350 million respectively as part of policies intended to ensure their peaceful relationship with the Jewish state.

While Israel is required to spend most of the aid money on military equipment made by U.S. companies, in turn Washington is required not to sell weapons to other Middle Eastern countries that are more sophisticated than those possessed by Israel to guarantee its Qualitative Military Edge.