On February 8th, the Biden administration legislated National Security Memorandum 20 (NSM 20), a reporting requirement that mandates the Departments of State and Defense submit a report to Congress assessing the use of US-provided weapons by a recipient state engaged in conflict within 90 days of exacting assurances from that state. Failure to comply with US and international law, including impeding access to humanitarian aid, should trigger a suspension in the transfer of arms to the country. The deadline for the administration to release its report is 8 May 2024.
Wary that the Biden administration has already failed to act on credible reports of similar violations committed by Israel, Jadaliyya Co-Editor, Noura Erakat, together with Josh Paul, former Director of Congressional & Public Affairs in the Bureau of Political- Military Affairs in the U.S. Department of State, a position from which he resigned in October 2023, created and co-chaired an Independent Task Force on NSM20 in order to do the administration’s homework, so to speak. The Task Force comprised of former State Department officials, military experts, legal experts, and a team of legal researchers, submitted their findings to the White House on 18 April 2024. The report details a number of clear, compelling, and credible incidents that should be included in the administration’s report to Congress, including 16-specific incidents that violate US and international law as well as an 18-paged appendix of additional incidents worthy of scrutiny. The Task Force found that based on its aggregate data, Israel systematically targeted civilians and civilian objects, including those that are indispensable for the survival of the civilian population due to the steady and sure flow of U.S. weapons, relaxed rules of engagement, and reliance on AI technology with little to no human oversight.
The Task Force briefed members of the House and the Senate in closed door briefings. The Senate briefing included 13 Senators, which Senator Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) told the Huffington Post, “We had a total of 13 members — that’s more members than you get for a regular hearing in the United States Senate. So I think it was an expression of the depth of concern.” In a press conference on 17 April 2024, Erakat, explained that the Task Force was adding to mounting and overwhelming evidence submitted to the administration so that it had no excuse not to submit a robust report to Congress. “They can even submit the report that we wrote,” she added. Failure to do so would further reveal the Biden administration’s commitment to war against Palestinians, even in blatant violation of its own law.
