New Pentagon chief holds 1st phone call with Israel's Netanyahu

WASHINGTON

New US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth held an introductory phone call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday, said a senior defense official.

"Both leaders discussed the importance of advancing mutual security interests and priorities, especially in the face of persistent threats," the official said in the statement.

Hegseth, who was confirmed as defense secretary Saturday after Vice President JD Vance broke a 50-50 tie in the Senate, stressed that the US is "fully committed" to ensure that Israel has the capabilities it needs to defend itself.

US President Donald Trump announced Saturday that he had lifted a hold imposed by the Biden administration on supplying 2,000-pound bombs to Israel.

“A lot of things that were ordered and paid for by Israel, but have not been sent by (President Joe) Biden, are on their way!” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.

Last May, then-President Biden paused the delivery of a weapons shipment that included 2,000-pound bombs that Israel had used to flatten wide swathes of the Gaza Strip.

He made the decision due to concerns over the possible use of the bombs in a heavily populated area.

The US has long been criticized for providing support to Israel in its ongoing war in the Gaza Strip, where more than 47,000 people, mostly women and children, have been killed since Oct. 7, 2023.

Some US lawmakers, including Sen. Bernie Sanders, frequently make calls for the US to stop supplying weapons to Israel and stop being complicit in Israel's war in Gaza.