US military support currently ‘very slow’: Israeli official

This picture taken from Israel near the border with the Gaza Strip shows Israeli military vehicles exiting Gaza on March 7, 2024. (File/AFP)

• 'The global perception of the war is impacting heavily on us and the relationship with the US,' Israeli military source says

LONDON: A high-ranking Israeli official has told ABC News that the pace of US military support has diminished. 
Annually, Israel receives approximately $3.8 billion in military aid from the US. The unnamed official said shipments of weapons and ammunition came “very fast” following the Oct. 7 Hamas attack but are currently “very slow,” raising concerns over dwindling stocks of 155 mm artillery shells and tank ammunition.
A rift between US President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has surfaced publicly over Israel’s conduct in Gaza.
Its invasion of the Palestinian enclave has killed more than 31,000 people so far, the majority women and children. 
“We are in a very precarious time now,” an Israeli military source told the Sunday Telegraph. “The global perception of the war is impacting heavily on us and the relationship with the US.
“The influence for the US to somehow slow down the offensive is something we are very worried about. They’re our most important ally.”
The source added: “Most importantly, this is a personal conflict, with the calls against Bibi (Netanyahu) at home and abroad impossible for Biden to ignore.”
Netanyahu’s stance against a two-state solution and his approval of further settlements in the occupied West Bank have exacerbated tensions with the US. 
Despite intensified scrutiny of US backing for Israel, the White House has denied that it is deliberately slowing its support. 
John Kirby, the White House national security communications adviser, said: “We continue to support Israel with their self-defense needs. That’s not going to change, and we have been very, very direct about that.”