Janice R. Andrews
August 7, 2024, Washington, D.C. — Speaker of the House of Representatives Mike Johnson (R-La.) has demanded that President Joe Biden provide Israel weaponry after a suspected missile assault at the Al-Asad Airbase in Iraq injured many US service men. In a statement released on Tuesday, Johnson emphasized the necessity of taking immediate action to counter threats in the area.
“The U.S. cannot hesitate to defend our servicemembers and our ally after repeated attacks on American troops in the region and while Israel is under threat from Hamas, Hezbollah, and Iran,” Johnson said. He emphasized that Iran’s hostility against the United States or Israel must be “met with decisive force.” In order to send a strong statement against these nefarious operations, he called on the United States and its allies to “strongly counter Iran and its terror proxies”.
“We know the current Iranian aggression, backed by Chinese and Russian interests, comes after a months-long pressure campaign against Israel from the Biden-Harris Administration,” Johnson said in criticism of the Biden administration’s strategy toward Iran. The White House has to acknowledge that their actions have put us at danger and provide Israel unwavering support at this point.
In order to provide Israel the ability to defend itself and deter Iran, he demanded the immediate delivery of all previously withheld and delayed armaments. Johnson stressed how important it was to make it known that there would be severe international, military, and economic fallout from any assault by Iran or backing for such acts.
Although terrorists supported by Iran have targeted American personnel in the area before, a Defense Department spokesman would not immediately clarify who was behind the rocket strike.
Benjamin Netanyahu, the prime minister of Israel, charged that Biden was just giving Israel a “trickle” of military hardware. On the other hand, the State Department insists that it is supplying weapons in accordance with standard procedures, abandoning the “fast-track” arrangement that was instituted following Hamas’s October 7 attack on Israel.
When questioned last month about whether the administration would begin expediting the transfer of weapons to Israel, National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby stated that there had been no change in policy. Because of the devastation in Gaza, the Biden administration had stopped shipping heavier bombs, but this month they started again.
The Biden administration has recently sent large military resources to the Middle East to strengthen defenses against prospective Iranian assaults, despite tensions with Netanyahu over military operations against Hamas.
When asked for a response to Johnson’s remarks, the White House did not come through right away.
The political divide that still exists over American foreign policy in the Middle East, particularly with regard to backing Israel and retaliating against Iranian aggression, is highlighted by Johnson’s demand. Republican leaders such as Johnson have sharply criticized the Biden administration’s delicate balancing act between diplomatic efforts to moderate regional violence and military backing for Israel.
The U.S. reaction to the rocket strike and its larger policy toward Iran and its proxies will be keenly monitored as events unfold. Johnson’s speech, which reflects the intricate and sometimes erratic nature of Middle East geopolitics, emphasizes the need felt by some politicians to adopt a stronger posture in favor of Israel and against regional threats.
