Washington: As part of an arms deal, the Trump administration plans to provide Israel with 40,000 weapons kits containing powerful 2,000-pound (907-kilogram) bombs.
The Biden administration had suspended the delivery of these weapons kits two years ago over concerns that they could cause mass casualties in Gaza.
As part of an arms deal, the Trump administration plans to supply Israel with 40,000 powerful 2,000-pound (907-kilogram) bombs. Two unnamed U.S. officials and one person familiar with the plan said this $2.8 billion weapons package would include a total of 40,000 bombs (20,000 MK84s and 20,000 BLU-117 variants), since the deal has not yet been finalized.
These weapons will be purchased with the funds of American taxpayers. In other words, American taxpayers’ money will be given to Israel, and Israel will use that money to buy weapons packages from the United States.
This arms sale is one of the ongoing measures being taken by the Trump administration to strengthen Israel’s military capability.
Tens of thousands of Palestinians have been killed in the conflict in Gaza, and the area has been extensively devastated.
Despite a fragile ceasefire reached with U.S. mediation, the violence continues.
This weapons package information has emerged at a time when Israel is becoming increasingly isolated internationally.
This isolation has developed since Israel launched the war in Gaza in response to the deadly attacks carried out by Hamas on October 7, 2023.
Although there have been some strains in the relationship between President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, especially after the military actions against Iran in February, this weapons package sale shows that they have not prevented the close ties of the U.S.-Israel alliance.
For many years, Trump’s relationship with Netanyahu has been marked by ups and downs. Ahead of their meeting at the White House in July, Trump had expressed dissatisfaction with Netanyahu over the Iran-related conflict issue.
In 2024, the Biden administration had held up the delivery of a batch of these bombs; but Trump lifted that restriction when he returned to office. Last year, the Trump administration bypassed the usual congressional review process and approved the delivery of an arms package worth about $3 billion, containing more than 35,500 bombs, with Israel.
After that, in January, that administration also approved a new weapons sales package worth a total of $6.67 billion for Israel.
This 2,000-pound weapons package includes several types; some are designed to penetrate deeply and strike underground targets, while others are designed to explode above ground and cause widespread damage.
Although the Israeli military has provided very little information about what kinds of bombs and artillery weapons were used in Gaza, experts who analyze attack footage and explosive fragments found at the scene believe that U.S.-made bombs were used there. Even though these were used in attacks targeting the tunnel network used by Hamas, they have also caused casualties in densely populated areas.
Although intense fighting in Gaza has eased since a fragile ceasefire took effect in October, Israel has continued carrying out attacks in the area, including nighttime strikes through Tuesday, in which several people were killed.
The attacks have continued even though Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law and a key mediator on Middle East affairs, met with Netanyahu last month in an effort to advance the ceasefire agreement and urge Israel to reduce its attacks.
Militant groups have carried out gunfire attacks on Israeli forces; Israel says its attacks are in retaliation for those assaults and for violations of the ceasefire agreement.
In the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, about 1,200 people were killed and 251 were taken hostage.
In response, Israeli attacks in Gaza have killed more than 73,264 Palestinians, according to the Gaza Health Ministry; this includes those killed since the ceasefire.