President Donald Trump on Tuesday morning said that the United States would halt billions of dollars in annual aid to Israel by the end of 2026, potentially ending decades of military funding for one of America\u2019s closest allies in the Middle East.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe were giving them $4 billion. We are. But it gets cut off at the end of the year,\u201d Trump declared during a call-in appearance on the \u201cFox & Friends\u201d morning program on Fox News. Israel\u2019s 10-year memorandum of understanding with the United States, which currently gives Israel $3.8 billion annually, runs through 2028 so it\u2019s unclear how easy it would be for the White House to stop the funding this year.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Referencing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu\u2019s statement in January that he wanted to taper off aid to zero at some point in the future, Trump questioned why Republicans should have to deal with criticism from hardline pro-Palestinian Democrats like Michigan Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed when \u201cwe give them more than anybody else and they no longer need it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a bad talking point,\u201d he added. His comments came as Americans across the country are voting Tuesday in midterm elections that will determine control of the U.S. House and Senate.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe reached an agreement on that\u201d and Netanyahu \u201cbrought it up,\u201d Trump continued. \u201cHe said: \u2018I think it would be appropriate if we do not receive aid,\u2019 because he understands that this is one of their points of contention.\u201d<\/p>\n
A growing number of Democratic congressional candidates across the United States have campaigned on a platform of reducing or halting military aid to Israel during the run-up to today\u2019s midterm elections. This April, dozens of senators \u2014 almost all of them Democrats \u2014 voted in favor of a failed motion to block the sales of certain weapons to Israel.<\/p>\n
Yair Golan, chairman of Israel\u2019s liberal Democrats party, slammed Netanyahu in the wake of Trump\u2019s statement, tweeting that \u201cprecisely at a time when Israel\u2019s defense spending has reached enormous proportions, when Israel needs to replenish its offensive weapons stockpiles, and after air defense capabilities have been depleted following such a long war\u2014Netanyahu logs another massive failure under his name.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe cessation of U.S. aid is heavy damage to Israel\u2019s security\u201d and \u201ca responsible prime minister would have fought to increase American aid, not eliminate it,\u201d added Golan, whose party opposes Netanyahu\u2019s and is trying to form a coalition to oust Netanyahu from power following Israel\u2019s own elections last Tuesday.<\/p>\n
A Season of Big Decisions. From the Knesset campaign to American midterms, Jewish communities are weighing what comes next. Help JTA keep delivering the deeper context.<\/p>\n
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