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WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama has rejected another Israeli request for advanced combat platforms.

Diplomatic sources said Obama refused a request by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for Israeli access to a proposed stealth variant of the F-15E fighter-jet.

Netanyahu, during what was termed a tough and unpleasant session, failed to win Obama's agreement to approve the export of U.S. offensive systems, including combat jets and helicopters produced by Boeing.

"Netanyahu asked that the United States expedite the export of military equipment and allow Boeing to export the stealth F-15 as part of the Foreign Military Sales program," a diplomatic source, briefed on the July 6 meeting at the White House, said. "Obama did not reply."

The sources termed the 90-minute one-on-one session between Obama and Netanyahu as "tough", with the two men far apart on such issues as a Palestinian state in the West Bank as well as Iran. They said Obama warned Israel against any military strike on Iran and stressed that Washington would resolve Iran's nuclear threat through a mixture of sanctions and diplomacy.

For the first time, the sources said, Netanyahu urged Obama to release weapons and platforms approved by the previous administration of then-President George W. Bush. This included air transports, attack helicopters, precision-guided munitions and other systems approved by Bush in... >>>