The Trump administration has approved a $2.8 billion sale of heavy bombs to Israel, according to a U.S. official, in what would be among the largest deliveries of U.S. munitions there even as American public support for the country declines.
The proposed sale would include 40,000 one-ton bombs whose use by Israel in Gaza and Lebanon has drawn international anger because of the civilian harm caused by their wide blast radius.
Human rights groups and some foreign governments have condemned Israel for dropping the giant munitions in densely populated areas, sometimes killing dozens of civilians in strikes targeting just one individual.
The package would include 20,000 each of America’s 2,000-pound MK-84 and BLU-117 bombs. It would also provide Israel with 20,000 bunker-busting I-2000 penetrator warheads, which explode on delay after smashing through an outer surface like soil, rock or concrete. The plan was reported earlier by The Washington Post.
The State Department recently sent the proposed deal to two congressional committees to get informal approval, the U.S. official said.
Production and delivery of the munitions usually takes months or years, but there are ways to expedite the process.
In mid-2024, the Biden administration paused a shipment of 2,000-pound bombs to Israel because of concern about their use in crowded civilian areas. President Trump allowed the shipment to proceed days after taking office last January.
Then in February, the Trump administration agreed to sell roughly $2.7 billion in munitions to Israel, a package that included 35,000 of the one-ton MK-84 and BLU-117 bombs.
While congressional leaders can tell the Trump administration that they oppose the deal, Secretary of State Marco Rubio can exercise emergency powers to proceed with the sale regardless, as he has done repeatedly, or just say he is moving forward with it. The administration would then bypass getting informal approval from Congress and formally announce the sale is happening.
In those cases, both the House and Senate would need to pass a resolution to block the deal. Such a resolution would require the support of two-thirds of each body to guarantee it can overcome a presidential veto.
The Biden administration also declared an emergency in the region to bypass congressional approval and expedite shipments of arms to Israel twice during the Israel-Gaza war. One of those packages included 13,000 rounds of tank ammunition, and the second included artillery munitions.
The State Department’s approval of such a large package of devastating munitions reflects Mr. Trump’s continued strong support for Israel despite his recent disputes with its prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, over the country’s military operations in Gaza, Lebanon and Iran. Mr. Netanyahu is expected to be in New York next week to address the annual gathering of world leaders at the United Nations General Assembly.
The State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The proposed deal is sure to draw strong opposition among Democrats in Congress, some of whom have called for ending all U.S. aid to Israel in response to the huge civilian toll of Israel’s military campaign in Gaza after the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attacks on Israel.
But anger toward Israel has also risen among Mr. Trump’s traditional supporters. The former Fox News host Tucker Carlson posted a tirade on social media that excoriated Israel for what he called the “slaughter” of Palestinians in Gaza.
Mr. Carlson also said that the added destructive power would embolden Israel and fuel the conflict with Iran launched jointly by the U.S. and Israel in February. Mr. Carlson has adamantly opposed the offensive and blames Mr. Netanyahu for convincing Mr. Trump to approve it. “If you wanted to extend the Iran war into the indefinite future, this is exactly what you’d do,” Mr. Carlson wrote.
The blast from a 2,000-pound bomb can be lethal at more than 1,000 feet and leave a crater as deep as 50 feet. Israel provoked a fierce outcry after it dropped hundreds of the heavy bombs on Gaza.
Israel argues that Hamas fighters in Gaza and Hezbollah militants in Lebanon intentionally embed themselves among civilians — sometimes in bunkers or tunnels that require heavy munitions to penetrate — to force Israel to kill innocent civilians and face international pressure.
But many former U.S. officials and military analysts question whether Israel has been too quick to pass up less destructive alternatives.
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