Haaretz newspaper is following the reports that Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vermont) is planning to propose that the US halt funding of Israeli military units that commit human rights abuses in the West Bank and Gaza:
U.S. Senator seeks to cut aid to elite IDF units operating in West Bank and Gaza
U.S. Senator Patrick Leahy is promoting a bill to suspend U.S. assistance to three elite Israel Defense Forces units, alleging they are involved in human rights violations in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
Leahy, a Democrat and senior member of the U.S. Senate, wants assistance withheld from the Israel Navy's Shayetet 13 unit, the undercover Duvdevan unit and the Israel Air Force's Shaldag unit.
These units, considered the "elite" of Israeli military units are some of the leaders in the most brutal Israeli attacks. For instance, the "Duvdevan" unit operates undercover in Palestine, and has been involved in a number of assassinations. The Shayetet 13 unit was the unit responsible for killing 9 unarmed protesters in international waters in its assault on the 2009 Gaza Freedom Flotilla.
To be clear, Leahy is not singling out Israel. Rather, he is calling on the US to apply existing law to Israel, rather than giving Israel a free pass:
Leahy, who heads the Senate Appropriations Committee's sub-committee on foreign operations, was the principle sponsor of a 1997 bill prohibiting the United States from providing military assistance or funding to foreign military units suspected of human rights abuses or war crimes. The law also stipulates that the U.S. Defense Department screen foreign officers and soldiers who come to the United States for training for this purpose.
Leahy wants the new clause to become a part of the U.S. foreign assistance legislation for 2012, placing restrictions on military assistance to Israel, particularly to those three units.
Leahy says these units are responsible for harming innocent Palestinian civilians and that no system of investigation is in place to ensure that their members are not committing human rights violations. According to Leahy's proposal, U.S. military assistance to Israel would be subject to the same restrictions that apply to countries such as Egypt, Pakistan and Jordan.
Israel is deeply worried, and has even send Defense Minister Ehud Barak to lobby Leahy. Such pressure might well block Leahy from even introducing a bill.
To be clear, the abuses of the Israeli Occupation go far beyond these three "elite" units. Cutting off funding to these units would be largely symbolic, since the vast majority of US aid goes to major weapons purchases, not to individual units. The Occupation and its abuses will go on, even if Leahy moves forward. However, such a move would send a good signal that Israel deserves to be held to the same standard as everyone else, and that aid to Israel should not get some magical exception to US laws on policies. Right now, sadly, Israeli aid always receives undue protection, and even as Republicans and Democrats call for spending cuts across the board, both explicitly exempt aid to Israel from any potential cuts. This is wrong, and Sen. Leahy's bill would be a first step towards righting that wrong.