根据美国总统乔·拜登(Joe Biden)下令提交的一份新报告，美国国务院和国防部周五表示，他们无法收集足够的证据来证明以色列使用美国武器违反了国际人道主义法。
这份报告是由国家安全备忘录20授权的，旨在调查美国提供的武器在活跃的冲突地区的使用情况。
“我们没有完整的信息来核实NSM-20涵盖的美国国防物品是否专门用于报告期间被指控违反[国际人道主义法]或国际人权法的行动，”报告称。“加沙冲突的性质使得很难处理个别事件或就个别事件得出结论。”
然而，评估报告继续说，鉴于“以色列对美国制造的国防物品的严重依赖”，有“合理的评估”认为，一些物品被用于与以色列在国际法下的义务“不一致”的情况。
尽管该报告称，以色列政府拥有“知识、经验和工具”来实施“减轻平民伤害的最佳做法”，但大量平民伤亡“提出了[以色列国防军]是否在所有情况下都有效利用这些知识、经验和工具的实质性问题。”
此外，报告指出，在冲突的最初几个月，以色列没有配合美国在加沙增加人道主义援助和分发物资的努力，但是官员们观察到情况有所改善。
尽管报告说巴勒斯坦人获得的援助水平仍然不够，但报告说，根据美国法律《对外援助法》的定义，美国政府“目前没有评估以色列政府禁止或限制美国人道主义援助的运输或交付”。
一份总结该报告重要结论的文件还指出，NSM-20是促使以色列采取措施增加对加沙援助的有用工具。
由于涉及以色列，该报告涵盖的时间为10月7日至4月下旬。它还调查了美国卷入武装冲突的其他安全伙伴，如乌克兰。
美国国务院指出，政府在很大程度上依赖来自以色列的信息来汇编其调查结果，但加沙冲突的性质也使披露信息变得困难。
据拜登政府的一名高级官员说，NSM-20报告提交给国会时，以色列官员听取了报告内容的简报。
马里兰州民主党参议员克里斯·范·霍伦(Chris Van Hollen)表示，尽管政府关于以色列武器使用情况的报告得出了一些“重要的一般性结论”，但该报告“回避”了有关遵守国际法的主要问题。
范·霍伦一直直言不讳地批评以色列在加沙的军事行动，并一再敦促拜登总统在人道主义问题上对以色列采取更强硬的态度。
范·霍伦对记者说:“这份报告中的一个重要结论是，有合理的理由认为内塔尼亚胡政府在加沙的行为违反了国际法。”“但政府回避了所有关于做出实际决定的难题。“
Biden admin doesn't have 'complete information' to verify whether Israel used US arms to violate international law in Gaza
The Departments of State and Defense on Friday said they could not compile enough evidence to prove that Israel used American arms in violation of international humanitarian law, according to a new report ordered by President Joe Biden.
The report was mandated by National Security Memorandum 20 to examine the use of U.S.-supplied arms in active conflict zones.
"We do not have complete information to verify whether US defense articles covered under NSM-20 were specifically used in actions that have been alleged as violations of [international humanitarian law] or international human rights law during the period of the report," the report said. "The nature of the conflict in Gaza makes it difficult to address or reach conclusive findings on individual incidents."
However, the assessment continues to say that given "Israel's significant reliance on U.S.-made defense articles" that it is "reasonable to assess" that some have been used in instances "inconsistent" with Israel's obligation under international law.
While the report says the Israeli government has "the knowledge, experience and tools" to implement "best practices for mitigating civilian harm," the high number of civilian casualties "raise substantial questions about whether the [Israel Defense Forces] is using them effectively in all cases."
Additionally, the report notes that Israel did not cooperate with U.S. efforts to ramp up humanitarian aid and distribution in Gaza during the initial months of the conflict, but that officials have observed improvements.
Though it says the level of assistance reaching Palestinians is still not sufficient, the report says the administration "does not currently assess that the Israeli government is prohibiting or otherwise restricting the transport or delivery of U.S. humanitarian assistance" as defined by U.S. law under the Foreign Assistance Act.
A document summarizing the critical findings of the report also noted that the NSM-20 was a useful tool toward inducing Israel to take steps to increase aid for Gaza.
As it pertains to Israel, the report covers the period from Oct. 7 to late April. It also examines other U.S. security partners involved in armed conflicts, such as Ukraine.
The State Department noted that the administration relied heavily on information from Israel to compile its findings, but that the nature of the conflict in Gaza also made uncovering information difficult.
Israeli officials were briefed on the contents of the NSM-20 report around the time it was given to Congress, according to a senior Biden administration official.
Sen. Chris Van Hollen, a Maryland Democrat, said that while the administration's report on Israel's weapons use made some "important general findings," the report "ducked" major questions about compliance with international law.
Van Hollen has been an outspoken critic of Israel's military operations in Gaza and has repeatedly pushed President Biden to get tougher on Israel over humanitarian concerns.
"The one important general finding that was made in this report was the conclusion that there are reasonable grounds to believe that the Netanyahu government has violated international law in its conduct in Gaza," Van Hollen told reporters. "But the administration ducked all the hard questions about making the actual determination."
