White House Makes 2,000-Pound Bombs Available to Israel, Undoing Biden’s Pause

An aerial photograph taken by a drone shows Palestinians walking through the destruction caused by the Israeli air and ground offensive, in Rafah, Gaza Strip, Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2025. (AP)
An aerial photograph taken by a drone shows Palestinians walking through the destruction caused by the Israeli air and ground offensive, in Rafah, Gaza Strip, Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2025. (AP)
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White House Makes 2,000-Pound Bombs Available to Israel, Undoing Biden’s Pause

An aerial photograph taken by a drone shows Palestinians walking through the destruction caused by the Israeli air and ground offensive, in Rafah, Gaza Strip, Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2025. (AP)
An aerial photograph taken by a drone shows Palestinians walking through the destruction caused by the Israeli air and ground offensive, in Rafah, Gaza Strip, Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2025. (AP)

President Donald Trump's White House has instructed the US military to release a hold imposed by the Biden administration on the supply of 2,000-pound bombs to Israel, a White House source told Reuters on Saturday.

The move was widely expected. Biden put the hold on the delivery of those bombs due to concern over the impact they could have in Israel's war with Hamas in Gaza.

A ceasefire to halt the war was recently agreed.

The Biden administration's particular concern had been over the use of such large bombs in the city of Rafah, where more than one million Palestinians in Gaza had taken refuge.



Türkiye Arrests 15 Over Deadly Fire at Ski Resort

Mourners carry the coffin of Vedia Nil Apak during the funeral of Ferda Apak and her daughter Vedia Nil Apak, killed in a huge fire in a ski resort hotel in Bolu, at Sakirin Mosque in Istanbul on January 23, 2025. (Photo by Yasin AKGUL / AFP)
Mourners carry the coffin of Vedia Nil Apak during the funeral of Ferda Apak and her daughter Vedia Nil Apak, killed in a huge fire in a ski resort hotel in Bolu, at Sakirin Mosque in Istanbul on January 23, 2025. (Photo by Yasin AKGUL / AFP)
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Türkiye Arrests 15 Over Deadly Fire at Ski Resort

Mourners carry the coffin of Vedia Nil Apak during the funeral of Ferda Apak and her daughter Vedia Nil Apak, killed in a huge fire in a ski resort hotel in Bolu, at Sakirin Mosque in Istanbul on January 23, 2025. (Photo by Yasin AKGUL / AFP)
Mourners carry the coffin of Vedia Nil Apak during the funeral of Ferda Apak and her daughter Vedia Nil Apak, killed in a huge fire in a ski resort hotel in Bolu, at Sakirin Mosque in Istanbul on January 23, 2025. (Photo by Yasin AKGUL / AFP)

Türkiye has arrested 15 people as part of an investigation into a fire that killed 78 people and injured dozens at a ski resort in the Bolu mountains earlier this week, state media reported on Sunday.

The tragedy has sparked calls for accountability and reform, and independent experts have said the Grand Kartal Hotel, at the Kartalkaya ski resort in western Türkiye, lacked basic fire safety measures.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Saturday that Türkiye 's judiciary was working to punish all those responsible for the incident. The hotel's management has pledged full cooperation.
On Sunday, Türkiye 's state-owned Anadolu news agency said the hotel's owner, manager, director, and 12 others were arrested as part of the probe. According to Reuters, itt said judicial proceedings continued for the deputy mayor of the Bolu province and the head of the local fire department, while six others were released under certain conditions.
The blaze started in the restaurant floor of the 12-story building, which had 238 registered guests, at around 3:30 a.m.