Israel's use of weapons may have violated international law, says US

But it also says instances of alleged breaches couldn't be verified due to chaos of Gaza war

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The Biden administration said Israel's use of US-supplied weapons during its military operation in Gaza may have violated international humanitarian law, as Israel called on May 11 for Palestinians in more areas in Rafah to evacuate and head to what it calls an expanded humanitarian area in Al-Mawasi.

But the administration stopped short of a definitive assessment, saying on May 10 that due to the chaos of the war in Gaza, it could not verify specific instances where use of those weapons might have been involved in alleged breaches.

The assessment came in a 46-page unclassified State Department report to Congress required under a new National Security Memorandum (NSM) that President Joe Biden issued in early February.

The findings risk further souring ties with Israel at a time when the allies are increasingly at odds over Israel's plans to strike Rafah, a move Washington has repeatedly warned against.

any The State Department's report included contradictions: It listed numerous credible reports of civilian harm and said Israel did not at first cooperate with Washington to boost humanitarian assistance to the enclave. But in each instance, it said it could not make a definitive assessment on whether breaches of law had occurred.