The US administration is reportedly preparing a new arms sale package to Israel worth $2.8 billion, including bombs weighing approximately 1 ton.
The US administration is reportedly preparing to execute the largest single heavy munitions sale to Israel in recent years. According to reports in the US media, based on an unnamed US official, the $2.8 billion package plans to provide Israel with 40,000 bombs, each weighing approximately 1 ton. The package is said to include 20,000 MK-84 and 20,000 BLU-117 type bombs, and among the munitions to be sold are also 20,000 I-2000 Penetrator (bunker buster) warheads.
'USED HUNDREDS OF TIMES IN GAZA AND LEBANON'
It was noted that the MK-84s, considered among the most destructive munitions in the Western military inventory, can hurl metal fragments hundreds of meters upon detonation, penetrate metal and thick concrete, and create large craters in the ground. It was emphasized that Israel has used the approximately 1-ton bombs hundreds of times in Gaza and Lebanon, playing a significant role in increasing casualties.
'SALE FINANCED BY US FUNDS'
Although the transaction is described as a sale, it was stated that the financing is provided through the 'Foreign Military Financing' (FMF) mechanism, whereby the funds provided by the US are used by Israel for arms purchases. It was claimed that informal briefings were given to the leaders of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and the House Foreign Affairs Committee regarding the pending sale package, and that the White House is pressuring committee leaders for the sale's approval.
