US Approves Nearly $3 Billion Arms Sale to Israel Amid Fragile Gaza Ceasefire
Washington (Quds News Network)- The Trump administration has approved a nearly $3 billion arms sale to Israel, marking the second time this month it has declared an emergency to approve weapons sales to Israel amid a fragile Gaza ceasefire.
The Pentagon confirmed the arms sale in statements on Friday. The prospective weapons sales were notified to Congress on Friday afternoon on an emergency basis.
That process sidesteps a long-standing practice of giving the chairs and ranking members of the House Foreign Affairs and Senate Foreign Relations Committees the opportunity to review the sale and ask for more information before making a formal notification to Congress.
The sales included 35,529 general-purpose bomb bodies for 2,000-pound bombs and 4,000 bunker-busting 2,000-pound bombs made by General Dynamics.
While the Pentagon said that deliveries would begin in 2026, it also said “there is a possibility that a portion of this procurement will come from U.S. stock” which could mean immediate delivery for some of the weapons.
A second package, valued at $675 million, consisted of five thousand 1,000-pound bombs and corresponding kits to help guide the “dumb” bombs. Delivery for this package was estimated to be in 2028.
A third notification consisted of $295 million worth of Caterpillar D9 bulldozers.
Friday’s announcements marked the second time this month the Trump administration has declared an emergency to quickly approve weapons sales to Israel. The Biden administration also utilized emergency authorities to approve the sale of arms to Israel without congressional review.
The arms sale also comes as the first phase of the ceasefire expired on Saturday.
The ceasefire agreement, which began on January 19, 2025, includes three phases. Each phase lasts 42 days. The first phase allows negotiations for the second and third stages, with mediation by Egypt and Qatar, supported by the United States.
The first phase halted 15 months of Israeli assault while also leading to the release of 33 Israeli captives from Gaza and around 1,777 Palestinian detainees held in Israeli prisons.
However, Hamas has accused Israel of violating the ceasefire and not implement the second phase amid reports that Israel seeks to extend the first phase.
Israel’s assault in Gaza has since killed more than 48,000 Palestinians, the majority of them women and children, according to Palestinian health officials, while displacing more than 90 percent of the enclave’s population and destroying most of the Gaza Strip.
