Overview
- Former U.S. officials say 2024 intelligence indicated Israeli military legal advisers warned there was evidence that could support war-crimes charges over the Gaza campaign.
- The material was not broadly circulated inside the U.S. government until late in the Biden term and was shared more widely ahead of a December 2024 congressional briefing.
- An NSC-led review weighed if a formal U.S. determination would legally compel halting arms transfers and intelligence sharing as Israeli operations relied on American-supplied weapons.
- Government lawyers concluded the United States lacked its own proof of intentional targeting of civilians or obstruction of aid, allowing support to continue; Israel denies wrongdoing.
- Biden was briefed, Trump’s incoming team was notified, and the debate unfolded alongside ICC arrest warrants and rising Gaza death tolls reported by Gaza health officials and the Israeli military.