Trump administration approves nearly USD 3 billion arms sale to Israel

Donald Trump. Pic/AFP

The Trump administration has approved a major nearly USD 3 billion arms sale to Israel, bypassing a normal congressional review to provide the country with more of the 2,000-pound bombs that it has used in the war against Hamas in Gaza.

In a series of notifications sent to Congress late Friday, the State Department said it had signed off on the sale of more than 35,500 MK 84 and BLU-117 bombs and 4,000 Predator warheads worth USD 2.04 billion.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio 'has determined and provided detailed justification that an emergency exists that requires the immediate sale to the Government of Israel of the above defence articles and defense services in the national security interests of the United States, thereby waiving the Congressional review requirements,' the department said.

Deliveries are set to begin next year, it said. Using the same justification, the department also said Rubio had approved another munitions sale to Israel worth USD 675.7 million to be delivered starting in 2028. In addition, it said Rubio had approved the emergency sale of D9R and D9T Caterpillar bulldozers worth USD 295 million.

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