US-Israel ties strong despite cluster bomb use, analysts say

‘If you look at the American use of force in Iraq against civilian targets, Israel is a far cry from that,’ Israeli expert on US-Israeli relations says; US Embassy spokesman in Tel Aviv: This isn't going to undermine our ironclad commitment to Israel's security
Associated Press

Washington's conclusion that Israel likely misused American-made cluster bombs by firing them at civilian areas in Lebanon has brought new pressure on Israel to review its wartime practices.

But it probably won't hurt US-Israeli relations in the long run, officials and analysts said Tuesday, citing the countries' close military ties and shared interests.

Lebanon War

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US Congress to discuss Israel's use of cluster munitions during war with Lebanon against existing arms deals. Process may result in prohibiting arms sales to Israel – though estimates doubt Bush administration will push for penalization. Any action will be mostly for show as Israel manufactures its own cluster munitions

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Cluster bombs spray bomblets over a wide area, and Israel's use of them in its war against Hizbullah guerrillas last summer has provoked uproar because they were fired into civilian areas. Israel has said Hizbullah guerrillas used the areas for cover to launch rockets at Israel.

The weapons are especially dangerous because they remain lethal as long as they are on the ground, threatening civilians after a conflict ends. About 25 people have been killed by cluster bombs since the 34-day war ended Aug. 14 in a U.N.-brokered truce, according to Lebanese officials.

The United Nations and human rights groups have accused Israel of spraying as many as 4 million bomblets. Some were Israeli-made; others from America.

US State Department officials sent a preliminary, classified report on the issue to Congress on Monday.

State Department spokesman Sean McCormack would not provide details of the report but said there ''likely could have been some violations'' of Israel's purchase agreement. He would not speculate on what action might be taken if a violation is confirmed.

''This is going to be one of those issues that we're going to discuss with Israeli officials privately and if we have concerns, we're going to discuss them with those officials, privately,'' said Stewart Tuttle, the US Embassy spokesman in Tel Aviv.

''But this isn't going to undermine our ironclad commitment to Israel's security or hamper our excellent bilateral cooperation in many areas.''

Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Mark Regev said Israel ''takes the concerns raised by the US extremely seriously. In response, we have been as detailed, forthcoming, and transparent as possible.''

'US and Israeli interests overlap'

Israeli security officials said they fear the report could damage relations with their American counterparts. However, they said they do not expect the US to take serious action, such as imposing sanctions. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to speak to the media.

''I don't think it will have an effect,'' said Eytan Gilboa, an expert on US-Israeli relations at Bar-Ilan University outside Tel Aviv. ''I don't even think it will affect the sale of these bombs. There is no clear-cut case of violation.''

A US official said the report might affect what types of weapons are sold to Israel, but said the issue would not be more than an ''irritant'' in overall relations. He declined to be identified because the findings in the American report are preliminary.

Israel has repeatedly maintained it used the weapons in compliance with international standards.

Even so, Israel's outgoing military chief, Lt. Gen. Dan Halutz, has complained that ground forces used cluster bombs against orders during the war, defense officials have said. Halutz announced his resignation earlier this month under an avalanche of criticism over his handling of the war, which is widely viewed as a failure in Israel.

An Israeli military investigation into the use of cluster bombs is under way. The military would not say when findings are expected.

Zeev Schiff, military analyst for Israel's Haaretz daily, predicted a chiding from Washington, but nothing more.

''Affect relations? The answer is marginally, tactically and (for) a short time. We'll look how to improve regulations governing the use of such weapons,” Schiff said.

Human Rights Group

Amnesty: IDF committed war crimes / Ynet

Report issued by international human rights group accuses Israel of violating international law during second Lebanon war. Israeli forces carried out 'indiscriminate' and 'disproportionate' attacks on civilians within southern Lebanon, report alleges, referring also to use of cluster bombs during campaign

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In 1982, the Reagan administration banned sales of cluster munitions for six years after a congressional investigation found misuse of the weapons during Israel's war with Lebanon that year.

The New York-based Human Rights Watch said the just-issued State Department report ''should lead to an immediate cutoff of all US cluster munitions sales to Israel.''

But with all the overlap in US and Israeli interests in the Middle East - fighting Islamic radicals and promoting moderate leaders - Washington isn't likely to take harsh action against Israel, Gilboa said. It's all the less likely given US military practices in Iraq, he added.

'If you look at the American use of force in Iraq against civilian targets, Israel is a far cry from that,'' Gilboa said.