The diplomatic crisis between the US and Israel deepened over the location of American refueling aircraft stationed at Ben-Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv.
According to the Jerusalem Post, US officials formally rejected the Israeli Transport Ministry's plan to move the aircraft to military bases. The Pentagon's reasoning was that the proposed alternative bases were both overcrowded and failed to meet security and operational standards.
Inter-agency tensions within Israel
The crisis broke out against the backdrop of existing tensions between the Israeli Transport Ministry and defense bodies. Transport Minister Miri Regev had demanded that the aircraft be removed from the airport and their number capped at 20 to avoid disrupting civilian flights during the summer holiday season.
However, the Israeli military, with the support of Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir, opposed moving the aircraft to air bases in the Negev Desert. The issue is expected to be resolved at the level of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yisrael Katz.
Against the backdrop of regional tensions
Regional tensions lie behind the US insistence on staying at Ben-Gurion Airport. The Pentagon's need to be prepared for "worst-case scenarios," including a possible attack on American bases in the Persian Gulf, forms the basis of this insistence.
Earlier, the US had halted the withdrawal of its refueling aircraft from Tel Aviv due to escalating tensions with Iran. After ceasefires and agreements with Iran, the aircraft were sent to Europe, but were redeployed to Israel and the Middle East when attacks on Iran resumed.
Israeli media had reported criticism that the military aircraft at the airport were disrupting commercial flights and reducing capacity during the busiest period of the tourism season.
